Toska
by CoffeeLover13
Summary: Faced with the decision to marry or take the caged bird seal, Hinata struggles to find her way. Empty and caged by his own demons, Sasuke decides to use Hinata as a way out, but ultimately finds his way home. "This is what happens when you try to tame demons." [Sasuhina, Post War, Slow Burn]
1. PART ONE: Chapter 1

_Disclaimer:_ _I do not own Naruto._

 _This story follows a separate timeline from Chapter 692 of Naruto and on. And even that is pretty vaguely. I'll explain it as I go, promise._

* * *

 **TOSKA**

"… _at its deepest and most painful, it is a sensation of great spiritual anguish, often without any specific cause…"_

– _Vladimir Nobakov_

* * *

PART ONE

Chapter One – Crime and Punishment

"Uchiha Sasuke, you are charged with the murder of three persons, the terrorization of nations, the kidnapping and attempted murder of the Hyuuga Hime, crimes against humanity, and crimes of war. How do you defend yourself of these charges?"

Sasuke stared up at his judges. A court made up of Konoha's council as well as its current and former Hokage. He wanted to laugh.

This hadn't been the plan.

The Last Uchiha shook his head and met the eyes of the court before finding his voice. "I did what was necessary," his voice was hoarse with disuse, sounding much more menacing than he intended. "I did my duty by my clan and dealt justice for my people. I did no more, no less, than was necessary to achieve my goal, and to survive."

Sasuke cleared his throat, awkwardly rotating his wrists in the chakra restraints that bound him.

"I do not defend myself."

The council went into a frenzy.

"You sonuvabi—"

"Thousands are dead after what you have d—"

"—e cannot stand for this insolence—"

"—isten to him justify slaughter?! Unbel—"

"Silence!" Lady Tsunade bellowed, her voice echoing in the small room with the handful of people present wincing. The proud blond glared amber eyes across the room to get her severity across, "The Uchiha has been found unsound in mind by—"

"Tsunade-sama you can't possibly—" Tsunade stared down the stocky councilman who interrupted her into silence.

"The Uchiha had been found unsound in mind by multiple notable shinobi of Konohagakure. They claimed his actions were not entirely of a well mind, which questions if he is capable to stand trial in his state." Tsunade looked across the room, meeting the eyes of everyone present: Sasuke, ANBU, and councilmen all equally cowed.

With a sigh she waved a hand to the ANBU, "Let the witnesses enter."

The ANBU immediately went to the door, even though the Fifth was no longer even remotely in charge of them. Despite the fact that the Sixth had just witnessed treason, it did not bother him in the slightest. He was aware that no one could disobey Tsunade-sama. Plus, she was in charge of these proceedings given that the crimes discussed had occurred during her time as Hokage, and he still did not find himself fit to be such.

Tsunade leaned to the Sixth Hokage, "My apologies Kakashi, old habits..." she trailed off, her focus retained by the witnesses entering the room.

"Uzumaki Naruto," the ANBU with a cat's mask began listing off the witnesses as they lined themselves up, standing between Sasuke and his judges, not unlike a shield. "And Nara Shikamaru," the ANBU continued, stepping aside to return to his post.

Sasuke knew them well enough, one being his old teammate and the other being his year-mate at the Academy. Naruto's usual ridiculous grin was replaced with a grim frown, while the Nara looked about the same as when he last saw him.

"I'm here as well!" a small girl with long dark hair came jogging into the room. Sasuke recognized this one as well—after all, she was one of the crimes he was being accused of. "My apologies Hokage-sama, I only just received your message."

Kakashi smiled to the once timid girl, "No harm done, Hinata-hime."

The petite Hyuuga blushed a violent crimson. The war may have changed her, but she was still rather shy, especially to compliments or flirting. Kakashi viewed it as a grand pass time to at least cause the poor girl to blush once in his presence.

"Hinata is sufficient, Hokage-sama," Hinata gulped, "I passed on my title some time ago."

"As that may be..." Kakashi trailed off, noting their derailment of proceedings. "How was your mission, Hinata-chan?" He smiled beneath his mask, hoping to prove a point here.

"I have a report prepared for later." Hinata quickly supplied as an answer. Kakashi was aware she could not discuss her S-rank mission with so many around.

"I take your promotion from Jonin has served you well?" Kakashi queried, hoping his meaning was finally realized. He had promoted Hinata to ANBU two months ago.

"Yes." Hinata grit out, aware of Kakashi's meaning now. She added on a "Hokage-sama" after a moment, the tenseness of the room reminding her of the need for manners.

"Are you quite through, Sixth-sama?" Shikamaru sighed, the strategist lazily making eye contact with his leader.

"Quite," Kakashi smiled.

"Alright," Tsunade let out a hiss of breath, "now that we're all here, let us be—"

"You cannot possibly allow a victim to be a witness for the Uchiha. Her fear of her assailant may be what motivates her to defend—"

"If I may," Sasuke cleared his throat again, "perhaps you weren't paying attention, but I do believe Kakashi just proved Hinata is more than capable of controlling her emotions and can be counted as a reliable witness, given she has the physical and mental capability of being an ANBU member."

Gasps were heard across the room.

"Seriously Hinata-chan?!" Naruto twisted so he could meet the eyes of the small girl.

Hinata's refusal to answer was answer enough.

Shikamaru let out an awkward cough. "If we could move forward with the proceedings..." He trailed off, giving the former and present Hokages meaningful looks.

"Of course, of course," Kakashi leans forward in his seat, "if you could each state your necessity for being here to catch the rest of us up?"

"Of course Kakashi-sensei," Naruto attempted a smile that overall looked rather uncomfortable. "I am here as a character witness on Teme's behalf as well as an actual witness given he is my teammate and I have been around him most of the Konoha 12—" Naruto faltered, "since our childhood."

Hinata tried her best not to flinch.

Sasuke noticed rather easily, and he was sure that it had not escaped the attention of the rest in attendance. _So, her dear cousin Neji really is dead._ Sasuke thought rather grimly. He'd heard the rumors, but somehow he'd doubted the stubborn Hyuuga had really died in the war.

Apparently he was wrong.

It was a pity really. He'd always considered Neji Hyuuga to be a formidable opponent and had hoped to one day test his Sharingan to his well respected Byakugan. It really was a pity to lose such a ninja.

"Ugh, so troublesome," Shikamaru murmured, "I am here to speak on the Uchiha's behalf given he is unable to do so himself."

Sasuke almost spoke up in that moment to claim he was well aware of what was happening and was definitely capable of defending himself however much he desired, but a part of him wanted to see the so-called genius in motion. It would be interesting to watch him defend a man who was without a doubt destined to be beheaded, at the very least, if not drawn and quartered. Especially since Sasuke was near positive the Nara despised him for whatever reason.

Well, maybe the Nara genius could defend him enough so that he'd be killed swiftly instead of tortured.

He'd rather not dishonor his family, and he had a feeling Konoha would find a way to make him cry out in pain if they were allowed to torture him in public as his death sentence.

Sasuke knew how his clan dealt with traitors. Their death was far from pleasant and beyond profoundly torturous.

"Hinata-chan," Kakashi offered, asking without having to do so.

"S-sorry Kakashi-sama," Hinata blushed slightly, having been caught lost in her thoughts and emotions. "I am here to offer up my opinion on Uchiha-san's character, explain what truly happened at my supposed kidnapping, as well as recant the charges that the Hyuuga clan called for against Uchiha-san."

At that moment Hinata looked to what Sasuke assumed was the Hyuuga's representative and stared them down—she actually mad-dogged some Hyuuga elder. If Sasuke wasn't preoccupied with being on trial he'd be impressed.

Well, he didn't really care that he was on trial, but still. He didn't want to show how easily the Hyuuga princess impressed him; especially given the circumstances.

If she had only—

"The Hyuuga clan cannot bring charges on my behalf that I do not support. I did not feel threatened by Uchiha-san at any point, and it is clear to me that he never intended me any harm," Hinata spoke confidently. Making eye contact with Kakashi and Tsunade, trying to communicate that these proceedings were really unnecessary.

Tsunade cleared her throat, gaining the groups attention. "Are you being coerced or under duress in any way that is causing you to recant the charges your former clan has brought up against Uchiha Sasuke?" Tsunade articulated, looking to Hinata with a quiet fondness.

Everyone seemed to have a soft spot for this girl. Sasuke tried not to roll his eyes. He was well aware of how many people really did have a soft spot for her too, that was why he had nabbed her in the first place.

"No, Tsunade-sama, although I was summoned here, I am under no duress or coercion to help Uchiha Sasuke." Hinata spoke quietly but firmly. She was adamant.

"Alright, then I suppose we shall proceed with the charges—with the exception of the kidnapping and attempted murder of the Hyuuga Hime," Tsunade sighed, adjusting the files on the table in front of her.

Naruto stepped forward, prepared to defend the only person he'd ever called his brother, but Shikamaru grabbed his arm, successfully stopping him in his tracks. "Naruto, that is not how these proceedings work," Shikamaru murmured.

"Dobe," Sasuke muttered only to be delivered a scathing look from Tsunade.

"I would like to call for dropping of these charges," Shikamaru declared.

The room went into an uproar once again.

"Silence! The lot of you! If you don't quit with this bullshit, I will have all your asses removed from the room and rule on this matter with Kakashi and myself alone!" Tsunade hollered, pounding her fist against the table. Causing it to tremble and shake.

Sasuke was surprised the table hadn't snapped, to be entirely honest.

Tsunade's display of power shut them up quickly.

"Please continue, Shikamaru-kun," Kakashi said, gesturing to the young man.

"As I was saying, I would like to call for these charges to be dropped."

"Under what circumstances?" A councilman blustered, his face a bright red.

"Under the circumstances that you cannot murder an entire clan," Shikamaru deadpanned.

Sasuke's eyes widened. He had honestly not seen that one coming. He didn't really think anyone else was entirely aware of the circumstances surrounding his clan's demise, but if—

"Uchiha Sasuke is the sole heir to the entire Uchiha clan, and is therefore, not only the head of the Uchiha clan, but is also, by definition, an entire clan himself. To charge or kill him for his misdeeds would not only annihilate an entire clan, which we wronged in the first place, but would also go against our laws in protecting the heads of clans in their dealings with clan matters." Shikamaru spoke quickly, meeting the eyes of all of the councilmen. Effectively making them uncomfortable, for they themselves were noblemen and heads of clans, or at the very least an elder representing a clan.

They all understood clan politics, and knew better than to mess with them.

It was brilliant really.

"That aside, do you really want to eliminate the Uchiha when his bloodline could bring us more Shar—"

"I do not desire to have any children whatso—"

Shikamaru turned around with enough ferocity to slap Sasuke's mouth clean off. "Understand me now, Uchiha," Shikamaru hissed, "I do not like you. I do not care what happens to you. I am helping you out of respect for a friend. Interrupt me one more time while I defend your life, and I will leave your ass high and dry."

Well, that was surprising.

"My apologies council, as was stated earlier, the Uchiha is currently of unsound mind, and therefore anything he says should be disregarded during the course of these proceedings." Shikamaru declared, dismissing Sasuke's attempt to undermine his defense.

"As I was saying, are you really willing to jeopardize Konoha's opportunity to once more be the only holder of a powerful doujustu? Of the feared Sharingan? I seriously doubt that."

"How are we certain that the Uchiha is of unsound mind?" Tsunade queried.

"Ah, that. Hinata-chan, would you step forward please?" Shikamaru turned to her.

Nodding, the small girl stepped forward to stand beside the Nara.

"Would you please state your reasoning for dropping the charges your family put into place? Besides your no longer being a part of your clan," Shikamaru murmured.

"When—ah—Uchiha-san grabbed me, he quickly made it apparent that he did not wish to survive his final encounter with Nar—Uzumaki-san." Hinata suppressed a flinch. It did not go unnoticed.

"I attempted to reason with him, telling him that kidnapping me would simply earn him more trouble than I was worth, and he said, and I quote, 'If you think I want to get out of this alive, then you haven't been paying attention.'"

"However, when I figured he was preparing to kill me, he simply gagged me and placed me under a genjutsu which should have left me asleep for at least a day, however," Hinata glanced over to Sasuke, beginning to feel uncomfortable, "Genjutsu was my sensei's specialty, so releasing myself from it was not a difficult matter."

"What the—erm—rescue g-group saw was also a genjutsu, however, I was n-not able to release them of theirs. It also did n-not h-help that their emotions fueled the genjutsu's severity and s-sway over them."

"I believe that Uchiha-san's goals were to enrage the group enough so that they would attempt to kill him, not capture and return him to Konoha."

Hinata shuffled her feet, looking to Shikamaru to see if there was anything else she should cover.

"Thank you, Hinata-chan, that should do." Kakashi spoke, leaning forward across the table.

"It is apparent that the Uchiha's goal was for the events to result in his death, the reason, however, remains unclear," the Hyuuga councilman reminded.

"I believe the reasoning was given at the beginning. He is the last of the Uchiha clan. That bares enough weight in and of itself," Shikamru bit out.

"Is this true, Teme?" Naruto asked, eyes wide and alarmed as he turned to the Uchiha.

Sasuke snorted dismissively, but that did not persuade the Kyuubi vessel.

"You wanted to die?! So you-you—Sasuke how could you?! We thought that Hinata-chan w—"

"Enough, Naruto-chan," Kakashi chastised. "It is clear that Uchiha Sasuke was in fact within his rights to attack those he did under clan law, and those actions that did not were done in hopes of resulting in his death. This matter is no longer open to the council, and is simply that of the Hokage to determine," Kakashi paused, waiting for his statement to register in everyone's minds.

"Now, with that in mind, everyone may leave, with the exception of Tsunade-sama and those present in defense of Uchiha Sasuke." Kakshi firmly added.

The councilman appeared to be tempted to argue and question, but they had already lost. Uchiha Sasuke would not be put to death.

"The other Kages will not stand for this Kakashi-sama," a councilman growled.

"I seriously doubt that, but I will keep that in mind when I am dealing punishment, councilman…" Kakashi's eyes narrowed for a moment. "What's your name again?"

The man fumbled, eyes wide at the slight. "Hokage-sama! My name is—"

"Oh, I'm sorry I have business to attend to, another time perhaps," Kakashi smiled condescendingly and waved his hand.

"Damn, Kakashi-sensei sure is cold." Naruto murmured.

Sasuke had to hold back a smirk. Perhaps he was similar to Kakashi in some ways.

* * *

Kakashi waited for the councilmen to filter out before addressing the room once more.

"ANBU-san," Kakashi called to the ANBU wearing a cat mask, "You and Bird-san may leave as well."

"But, H-hokage-sama, w—"

"I think we'll be alright. If anything happens, I assure you, we will protect the Hokage," Tsunade snorted. "Now go."

The ANBU guards hesitantly left the room, glancing warily at the last Uchiha while closing the large doors to the council room. The doors shut with a heavy thud.

"Now then," Tsunade made a few hand signs and the room sealed around them with a sucking sound. The room suddenly felt much more sterile with the outside world sealed off from them. Sasuke felt mildly suffocated by it, mostly because it was Tsunade's chakra that surrounded them.

"Well get on with it." Tsunade gestured at Kakashi and leaned back in her chair, clearly dejected by the fact that she had to be here for these proceedings.

"This is far too troublesome," Shikamaru muttered. He walked over to where the councilmen had been seated and took a seat. Sighing, he leaned back until he was staring at the ceiling with his arms crossed. "Oi, Naruto. You might want to sit for this part too." Shikamaru called, jerking his chin to have the blonde join him.

"Hinata-chan, will you please explain what happened that day?" Kakashi leaned forward, clasping his hands together and eyes narrowing.

Hinata closed her eyes and took a deep breath, steadying herself. It was clear that the girl was still uncomfortable with talking about this.

"And Hinata-chan," Kakashi began, waiting for Hinata to make eye contact. "Do not spare me any details. I need to know all of it."

Hinata sighed. "H-hai, Hokage-sama."

"At that point in the battle, I was inside the tree line, and there had been several explosions. One had been cl-close enough that it had launched me further into the forest, with debris raining down around me…"

* * *

 _Hinata's chest rattled with every breath she took. Being thrown by the last explosion from the top branches of a tree, and her smacking into several branches on the way down, was probably what caused whatever broken ribs she currently had. Her assailant grabbing her by the waist in midair just before the explosion didn't really help the situation either._

 _The petite Hyuuga let out a wet barking cough, blood riddling her jacket and chin. Spitting whatever was in her mouth out, she tried to roll over and push herself up in the mucky dirt, fingers digging in and arms shaking with the effort of it._

 _"Kiba!" she tried to call out. He was the last of her friends she had seen before she ended up on the ground. "Naruto-kun!" she tried again, but her voice was raspy and didn't carry well through the dense smoke that surrounded her._

 _"On your feet, Hyuuga," a ragged baritone ordered from beside her._

 _Hinata recognized the voice immediately._

 _"Uchiha-san," she gasped out, "why are you doing this?"_

 _"I said, on your feet Hyuuga. You're my bargaining chip now, and it just won't do if you're unconscious." Sasuke stated, his voice almost monotone, not even remotely reflecting the fact that for the past day and a half he'd been waging war, all on his own, against the entire ninja world._

 _"If you think-k you can use m-me as a hostage to escape punishment," Hinata rasped, staving off another coughing fit, "then you've got another thing coming."_

 _Sasuke laughed humorlessly. "Princess, if you think I want to get out of this alive, then you haven't been paying attention." The Uchiha let out an undignified snort and held out a hand to the small Hyuuga. "Come, I don't have time to waste. That Dobe will be upon us any second now."_

 _Hinata stared at the bridge of his nose, confused. Every lesson she's ever had told her the Uchiha was lying. That his world famous Sharingan eyes were spinning furiously right this moment, and simply waiting for the opportunity to strike. Her instincts, however, told her he wasn't a threat._

 _Hinata looked up into dark charcoal for eyes, confirming her instincts. The Uchiha had already given up._

 _He wants to die._

 _"I..." Hinata faltered. Struggling to find the words. "Uchiha-san, I don't understand..."_

 _"You don't need to Hyuuga. You just have to play your part in all this, and then you and the Dobe can live happily ever after and you can have a bunch of baby Hokages. Ok?" Sasuke grabbed the girl by her bicep, hoisting her up into a standing position and pushing her forward. "Now start moving," Sasuke growled, his emotions finally seeping into his speech._

 _"B-but, Uchiha-san," Hinata stumbled forward, her knee giving out under her weight. Apparently she'd injured it in the fall._

 _"Hyuuga," Sasuke grunted, grabbing her arm again, "hold yourself together." Sasuke snarled, throwing the girl over his shoulder._

 _Hinata struggled for a moment before she reminded herself that that was what he wanted. She just wasn't sure why._

 _"What's my part in this Uchiha-san?" Hinata called over her shoulder, hoping she could still help Naruto's friend not make a mistake that could take his life, if not hers as well._

 _"You're the damsel that'll lure out the noble warrior, Hyuuga, and I'm the dragon he has to kill." The Uchiha let a smirk form on his lips. He rather enjoyed the idea of going out in a blaze of glory at the hands of the last friend he had. The only person, besides Itachi, that he considered a brother._

 _Hinata shook her head in confusion. As simple as Sasuke was making it sound, she did not understand what he was going on about. Warriors and dragons? He obviously wasn't thinking coherently._

 _"Uchiha-san, are you well?"_

 _Sasuke snorted. "You do realize that I'm basically kidnapping you, right?" Sasuke jostled her slightly, trying to make her uncomfortable and make a point._

 _"Yes, I'm also aware of the fact that there, are at the very least, five pursuers on our tail. You have very little time," Hinata sighed, the pain in her chest and her legs smarting, "and this is hardly my first kidnapping Uchiha-san."_

 _Hinata laughed. This situation was ridiculous._

 _"In fact, this is probably the most poorly executed kidnapping I've been a victim of," Hinata called over her shoulder, twisting slightly in hopes of easing the pain in her ribs._

 _"Do not test me Hyuuga. I can still kill you if I feel like it." Sasuke snarled, jostling the girl around again in hopes of furthering her discomfort._

 _Hinata wanted to tell him she honestly didn't think he would, but didn't really want to antagonize him. She still had a chance to help Naruto's friend, and she wasn't about to mess that up._

 _"Uchiha-san, I must advise against this. You still have a chance to-"_

 _Sasuke unceremoniously dropped the Hyuuga heiress, flipping her over his shoulder. "A chance to what? Escape?" Sasuke snapped, rage morphing his face. "For what?! To go where?!" he shouted, rage climbing to fury._

 _"I have NOTHING left," he growled, getting so close to Hinata that all she saw was his eyes. "No purpose. No family. No goal."_

 _Sasuke was shaking with fury. He'd come unhinged. She could see it in the way his eyes flickered back and forth between his own hollow dark eyes to his spinning Sharingan. There would be no reasoning with him. She'd either have to incapacitate him, protect him when the others showed up, or somehow explain before they started fighting. None seemed all too likely or possible._

 _Hinata activated her Byakugan, assessing the field they were in as well as how far away her comrades were._

 _The petite girl let out a small gasp. They were much farther from the battlefield than she thought. The Uchiha's speed was no joke. Her friends were roughly three or four kilometers away. 'They'll be here soon enough. Neji should be able-'_

 _Hiniata choked on the thought._

 _Neji was dead._

 _Hinata had to remind herself how to breathe._

 _Looking up, she realized the Uchiha had moved back and now seemed vacant of emotion. "They'll be here soon, Uchiha-san. Do what you must with me, but please don't harm my friends." Her voice warbled and was quiet. She was lucky the last Uchiha even heard her._

 _"We'll see. It depends on how ready the Dobe is to finally kill me." He deadpanned, making signs with his hands._

 _Hinata wanted to say she didn't understand again. That there were so many who still loved him, even after all that he'd done, but she seriously doubted that would make a difference at this point._

" _Now, Hyuuga, look into my eyes."_

" _Wha-"_

 _She saw a flash of Sharingan, then all she saw was muted darkness._

* * *

Hinata sighed. "I don't know what actually happened in the field, but Kiba-kun and Shino-kun explained it t-to me." Hinata winced. She felt so uncomfortable. Bringing up all of this awkwardness again, all because of an unfortunate misunderstanding.

Sasuke was just pissed at this point. It was clear that the Hokages weren't going to listen to him. They were hanging off of every word of the Hyuuga brat. She couldn't even maintain eye contact throughout the story.

"You know, I can tell this part if you'd like." Sasuke smirked, though no mirth touched his eyes. "I remember it pretty well, having actually been there, and conscious for the whole thing."

"Shut it." Shikamaru hissed. "I already regret helping you as it is—don't make me take back everything I said." He glared daggers at the Uchiha, but the traitor hardly noticed.

Kakashi sighed, waving both of them off.

"I can fill in the blanks here if you'd like Kakashi-sensei," Naruto grumbled. His face dark—he didn't like rehashing what had happened that day in general, but what happened in that field was…

 _Naruto burst into the field, Kiba riding Akamaru on his left, Shino on his right, and Shikamaru trailing behind._

 _Kiba lifted his nose into the air, soot covering his face, along with minor abrasions, "She's been here," he snarled, coughing slightly, "I just can't tell if—"_

" _Hinata's still here," Shino murmured, his voice sounding off._

" _What do y—" Kiba lurched forward, halted by Akamaru jerking back._

" _Sasuke-teme." Naruto breathed._

" _Dobe, I see you finally caught up." Sasuke sauntered into the middle of the field, appearing ever confident._

" _Stop this now. Where is Hin—"_

" _Give us Hinata-chan!" Kiba screamed, jumping off Akamaru and into the field._

 _Sasuke cackled, "I don't think that's something I can make happen anymore." Sasuke glanced over to his side where Hinata was strapped in the air between two trees. She was limp except for the wire strings that were holding in place._

" _Hi-Hinata-chan…" Naruto's eyes widened. "Teme! What have you done to Hinata-chan!?" Naruto cried out, his voice strangled._

" _Nothing yet," Sasuke smirked, Sharingan blazing. Darting in front of Hinata and drawing Kusanagi. "Now…now I've done something." Staring Naruto down, Sasuke flicked his wrist._

"… _Chidori."_

 _Hinata's screams were high-pitched and horrifying._

 _She thrashed about, suspended in the air between the two trees. The metal wires cutting into her skin—the more she thrashed, the more it tore into her. Hinata screams reached blood curdling heights and suddenly died off. She had passed out from the pain and went mercifully limp. The electricity was still flickering through the wires, causing her to involuntarily twitch._

" _Hinata-chan!" Kiba wailed. "Stop! You're killing her!"_

 _Sasuke glanced at his former academy mates, back to Hinata, and with a flick of his wrist slit her throat. Eyes wild, Sasuke turned to face Naruto, Kiba, Shikamaru, and Shino. "So much for that Hyuuga pride."_

 _Naruto screamed, running towards Sasuke. "You bastard!"_

* * *

 _"_ And all hell broke loose." Sasuke supplied. Genuinely bored with story time at this point.

"I think that's enough to showcase what the problem was here," Shikamaru mumbled, standing from the council seating. "Sasuke wanted us to kill him, and he nearly succeeded."

Sasuke didn't miss the fact that Naruto flinched at those words. He didn't care how the Dobe felt about his wanting to die. Naruto couldn't possibly understand what it was like to have everything, and then have nothing. He never would. No one would.

Sasuke snorted. "I would have been successful if some people would just let their kidnappers die." He pointedly glared at Hinata. Her face flamed red at the comment. _Good. She deserves to feel uncomfortable about this,_ the Uchiha mused.

Hitting the table with his fist, Naruto gained the rooms attention. "You should apologize to Hinata-chan for all that you have put her through, and you should thank her for the fact that she _**saved**_ your ungrateful life." Naruto huffed, his face growing red. The blonde was livid and couldn't take a moment more of listening to this madness.

"Well…On that note." Kakashi coughed awkwardly. "Uchiha Sasuke, we officially denounce your crimes as a traitor. You were acting on clan law, and we must not interfere." Kakashi glanced at Hinata, seeing that her face was still red, he softened. "Since the Hyuuga-Hime has so kindly come to us today to explain the situation, we are dropping the charges against you from the Hyuuga clan."

"So what, am I free then?" Sasuke snarled. He actually snarled. He wanted this to be over.

Kakashi leaned forward, a dangerous smile forming on his face. "No, Sasuke-kun. You are not free."

Tsunade cackled and released the sound proofing barrier she had surrounded the room with. "This'll be good," she chuckled to herself, grabbing a flask from her coat.

"Uchiha Sasuke, for your crimes as a traitor and abandoning your village in a time of need, you shall be placed under house arrest. You shall be bonded to the village, and you shall be sealed." Kakashi's eyes sharpened, honing in on the fact that Sasuke was about to interrupt him. "You will be monitored by an ANBU at all times, and you shall remain on a probationary period for 3 months until we deem you are capable of interacting with society."

Kakashi raised to fingers and twitched them slightly. The ANBU from before returned, flickering into position behind Sasuke.

"We are done here today. Take him back to his cell until arrangements can be made." Kakashi sighed, closing his eyes and leaning back into his seat. He did not take joy in punishing his formal pupil, but it needed to be done.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me!" Sasuke shouted, eyes livid.

"And please, for the love of kami, knock him out." Kakashi waved his hand flippantly.

With a "Hai, Hokage-sama" Sasuke's world went black.

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Alrighty. It has been a long time since I have written some fanfiction._

 _This will end up being a SasuHina fanfic, and it's most likely going to be a slow burn._

 _Comments or criticism? Leave a review!_

 _Thank you for reading!_


	2. PART ONE: Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto_

* * *

PART ONE

Chapter Two: Consequences

* * *

"That was a little unnecessary," Kakashi muttered, shaking his head at the ANBU as they gathered the Uchiha to return him to his cell. The Uchiha's chakra restraints clinked against the cement floor as they dragged him away. Kakashi brought a hand to his face, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

The doors slammed shut with a bang.

"Thank you so much Kakashi-sensei, I was worried you weren't gonna help for a second there." Naruto smiled, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "And thank you Shikamaru and Hinata-chan. I donno what I would have done without your—"

"Do not thank me for that, Naruto." Shikamaru grimaced, his face scrunching up in a painful way. "I do not feel good about what I just did here, and I already regret it…" Shikamaru trailed off. He stood quickly and exited the chambers—sparking up a cigarette as he went.

"Well… Then thank you Hinata-chan. I really appreciate that you came here today to help Sasuke. It means a lot." Naruto grinned. He felt uncomfortable with his outburst at Sasuke now. He'd been right to defend Hinata, but it felt like he'd overstepped in a way. Especially since…

"There's no need to thank me, Nar–Uzumaki-san." Hinata forced a smile. "I came here to ensure that no harm came to a fellow shinobi because of my clan. Plus, Hokage-sama requested my presence anyway…" Hinata trailed off. She was starting to feel incredibly uncomfortable. Despite all the time that had passed, she still felt awkward around Naruto. There were so many things that were left unsaid, and that would remain that way.

"Hokage-sama." Hinata bowed and took her leave. She did not want to stay in those chambers any longer than she had to. Not when it felt like the air was being sucked out of it. She had to get home and deal with some incredibly angry Hyuugas anyway.

"H-Hinata-chan!" Naruto feebly called after her, but she had already flickered away.

"Let her go Naruto-kun." Kakashi solemnly shook his head, eyes downcast. "That wound still needs some time to heal."

Naruto looked helplessly between Kakashi and the open door. Making a move like he was about to dash after her.

"Don't, you idiot. Leave the poor girl alone." Tsunade hissed. "Give her the space and time that she deserves."

Naruto nodded. Looking rightfully chastised. "Hai, Oba-chan." Naruto sighed. Somethings weren't going to be changing anytime soon, even with the Uchiha back in Konoha.

* * *

Hinata made her way to the Hyuuga compound, taking her time to savor the sun's rays. Even though she was sure that the elder at the council meeting would have told her father what she had done by now, and she needed to act quickly to do damage control, she was in no hurry to reach the Hyuuga compound.

She wasn't sure how to explain her going against the clan's wishes to the elders, let alone her father. The truth would probably be the best course of action but they most likely wouldn't believe the truth. She still didn't full believe the truth. Hinata wouldn't even have gone today if it wasn't for Kakashi asking her to.

After Neji's death, Kakashi had passed on some comforting words and been understanding with her family while they were in mourning. Which was appreciated. Hinata was taking Neji's loss incredibly hard and had refused several missions. At first, Kakashi had been polite and accepting. Letting her grieve, when in reality she just didn't trust herself to be a competent shinobi. Her cousin had jumped in front of her to take a fatal blow. How could she be trusted to do what needed to be done when she didn't even trust herself?

It wasn't until Kakashi had told her that she was disappointing Neji's memory and letting her friends down, that she realized she needed to keep moving forward. She owed it to Neji to be the best shinobi she could possibly be.

Most days though, Hinata felt like she was walking around with a hole in her chest. She was still having nightmares…

Hinata shook her head. She didn't need to think about that right now.

Going against the clan was never a good idea, but she had been honor bound. Surely they would understand that. Hyuugas were nothing if they weren't prideful.

The Hyuuga compound was a sprawling estate, tucked away close to the Hokage's tower. The estate was large, with enough space to house all of the Hyuuga's important events throughout the years. From housing dignitaries to throwing weddings for their main house members, the compound was built for it all.

As a child the estate intimidated Hinata. The gardens were her only area of comfort outside her room on the compound. Nowadays she rarely visited the garden. She was usually found on the training grounds if she wasn't sleeping in her room. The place no longer intimidated her, she just disliked it. It always felt too sterile to be a home, but lately it felt unfamiliar and cold. She had always felt a disconnect, no matter how hard she tried to fit in. Now it was exasperated.

Closing in on the main house, Hinata saw Hyuuga children running about the grounds.

One of the children screeched, making Hinata flinch, but the screeching quickly turned into laughter. Hinata shook her head. It was only children playing.

Hinata continued her path to the main house, knowing her father and the elders would certainly be waiting for her to arrive. The pathway which normally brought her peace unsettled her. The mid-afternoon light was causing the shadows to stretch and the area to seem unfamiliar.

The front door was already open in anticipation of her arrival. "Hinata-sama," Hyuuga Hiyori, a branch member who worked in the main house, greeted her.

"Hiyori-san." Hinata greeted, bowing her head in return. Hinata made to remove her shoes, but Hiyori grabbed her wrist, halting her movement.

"Hiashi-sama requests your presence at once, Hinata-sama." The woman's face twinged in sympathy, her voice taking on a soft and comforting tone.

"Hai. Thank you, Hiyori-san. I will be there shortly." Hinata forced a smile, but continued to remove her shoes. Taking them in her hand, she walked around Hiyori and headed for her room. She needed to change before meeting her father and the elders. She had been training when she received Kakashi's message, and her dash through the roof tops to the council chambers had left her covered in dust.

Plus, changing would provide her with some additional time to gather her thoughts.

* * *

Hinata's room was large and bland. The few things that marked it as her own were the pictures that adorned the wall opposite her window. A majority of her pictures were with Team 8 with a few of her family scattered through. It brought her comfort to see the pictures and they remind her what she was working for, and why.

The rest of the room was a bland beige. Beige walls, wooden floors covered with a beige rug, a large bed with a white comforter engulfing it, and three large windows lining the east wall.

Moving quickly – fully aware that her father would know that she was home by now and expecting her – Hinata dashed into her bathroom. She tore of her black training outfit and turned on the shower. Briefly glancing at herself in the mirror, Hinata noted that she would need to trim her bangs soon in order to avoid them covering her eyes. Her father couldn't stand when her bangs covered her eyes. For some reason it was a serious pet peeve of his.

Light purple like bruises were beginning to form under her eyes. She needed to get some better sleep soon, or she would start to scare children.

Six minutes later she was freshly showered and dressed in loose fitting black pants and a long sleeve shirt. Braiding her damp hair to one side, Hinata opened her door and headed to her father. She had decided to tell them the truth. It was up to them as to whether they would believe it.

* * *

 _Hinata's face twitched. That genjutsu had been bizarre. It had been incredibly comforting, but incredibly unreal. Sasuke had barely tried to hold her._

 _"U-uchiha-san…" Hinata murmured, struggling to pull herself up. Her ribs still ached from the explosion, and her shoulder felt out of place from when the Uchiha had flipped her over. She was just so tired…_

 _Hinata shook her head. Her ears were buzzing too. She didn't remember hitting her head, but perhaps she had when she fell down when Sasuke cast the genjutsu. Blinking the grogginess from the genjutsu out of her eyes, Hinata squinted. Trying to focus on the space in front of her._

 _"Damn you, Sasuke!"_

 _Hinata shook her head again._

" _You're going to pay for what you've done! You bastard!"_

 _Hinata saw Sasuke standing in a field with Kiba, Naruto, Shikamaru, and Shino charging at him. Behind him she saw the flickering of a genjutsu that was wearing off. He was getting what he wanted._

 _"Then come and kill me."_

 _Hinata gasped from the pain of standing. She needed to stop them. Naruto would never forgive himself for killing Sasuke, especially when the reason was because of some genjutsu. Stumbling her way over to her fellow shinobi, Hinata called out to them, hoping that hearing her might grasp their attention._

 _"N-naruto-kun! Kiba-kun! Sh-shino-kun! Shikamaru-san! D-don'—" Hinata fell, her ribs landing on a fallen branch and knocking the wind out of her. She gasped and struggled to stand once more. She hated feeling so damn weak. If she wasn't so feeble she could help. She'd actually be useful, and maybe Neji-nii-san…_

 _"N-neji-nii-san…" Hinata sobbed. He was dead. The pain hit her in her chest. Taking what air was left in her lungs with it. "N-neji-nii-san is…" Hinata shook her head. She needed to focus. If she didn't she'd lose more than just Neji._

 _"Naruto-kun!" Hinata sobbed, "Stop! Please!"_

 _Her shouting didn't reach the field and Naruto was charging at Sasuke. She pulled herself along the ground and she could see a glimmer around the edge of the field. Sasuke must have put a barrier so that no one could interfere._

 _If she didn't stop him now, he was going to do something he'd desperately regret._

 _Gathering what strength she had left, tears streaking her face, Hinata pulled herself to her feet. She shoved a hand in her pack and retrieved an energy pill. She'd need the boost if she was going to try and catch up to Naruto._

* * *

Sasuke groaned.

He was really getting tired of waking up with headaches, and in a cell. The chakra restraints really didn't help. He was fairly certain that the restraints made his headaches worse. Especially since he was never given the opportunity to restore his chakra reserves. He'd been running on empty since the war, and they were all too happy to keep him that way.

Two months like this seemed excessive, but he imagined it provided the citizens of Konoha with a sense of security.

Sasuke sat up and crossed his legs. Trying to relax while being in a cage was proving tedious, but attempting to meditate was the closest he could get. He breathed in and out deeply, and closed his eyes. He needed to make a plan for how to handle this.

Sticking around to see how things went could be entertaining. Watching the dobe try to become Hokage would be interesting on its own. He could follow through and try to restore his clan, but what was the point? All of the women in Konoha were afraid of him at this point at best, and at worst, there was Sakura. She was smart and a strong shinobi, but… She was Sakura. She felt more like a sister than anything else.

His feelings of wanting to die weren't as strong as they were two months ago. It had settled down to more of a feeling of meaninglessness. He no longer had a purpose, and bringing back the Uchiha clan seemed futile. History would only repeat itself, and he didn't want to be a part of it.

Killing himself was out of the question on principal.

Just because he wanted to die didn't mean he wanted to be the one to do it. Self-destructing seemed more entertaining anyway. It wasn't an option though any longer. The chakra restraints made it next to impossible to be considered a threat. They made it hard for him to stay awake most days. He had tried overwhelming them in hopes of breaking them, but that only made him pass out for a day and a half from chakra depletion.

Sasuke drummed his fingers against the back of his other hand. It seemed he would have to wait and see how things would play out.

Or, worse case scenario, he'd have to find another purpose to pass his time.

* * *

 _Naruto charged at Sasuke, rasengan forming in his hand and eyes bleeding red. Kyuubi itching at him in a way that it hadn't in a while._

 _Sasuke's chidori was crackling in his hand. The closer Naruto got, the more it dissipated. He didn't want to actually fight the dobe. He just wanted to make him angry enough to come at him full force. Killing a friend was certainly doing the trick._

 _Naruto was close enough that Sasuke could feel the winds of rasengan slashing his skin. He realeased his chidori, flickered his sharingan back to his charcoal black, and relaxed. He was ready to die. This was it, and he couldn't be—_

 _"Naruto-kun! Don't!"_

 _Naruto stumbled, startled by the shout. His rasengan shooting off to the side, blasting trees away in its wake. "Hinata-chan…"Naruto whipped his head around, watching Hinata stumble onto the field. "Hinata-chan! What happened!"_

 _"Goddamit," Sauke hissed, taking a step forward. "Stupid Hyuuga!"_

 _"Naruto-kun! I donno what genjutsu he put on you, but it's not real! H-he just wants t-to get you mad enough to kill him!" Hinata lunged, diving in between Sasuke and Naruto. She scrambled to her feet, spreading her arms out. "Don't, Naruto-kun! You'll regret it!"_

 _Naruto faltered, confusion all over his face. Hinata had just been screaming at the tree line, he saw her bleed, and now she was here and fine? What?_

 _"Sasuke-teme! That's disgusting! Trying to save yourself by manipulating Hinata's image! You sick bastard! It wasn't enough to kill her, but to use her image as a diversion…" Naruto snarled. Kyuubi's chakra bleeding out, consuming him. "You'll pay for this Sasuke," Naruto said, his voice sound hollow and detached._

 _Sasuke smirked. "Dobe."_

 _Naruto charged at him again, rasengan blazing again. "You bastard!"_

 _"Naruto-kun! No!" Hinata shouted, throwing herself in front of the Uchiha. She knew Naruto would never forgive himself if he killed Sasuke for a lie. He was already losing control, it was unlikely that they could reign him in if he killed Sasuke. Naruto would fall apart, or worse, be consumed by the Kyuubi._

 _Hinata closed her eyes, waiting for the impact of the rasengan to tear at her skin, but it never came. Just a bizarre sense of floating. Hinata opened her eyes to Sasuke holding her above his head with Naruto's fist through his shoulder._

 _Naruto came to himself quickly. Beside himself at his own actions. He almost killed Hinata. He would have pushed rasengan right through her skull if Sasuke hadn't grabbed her out of the way._

 _"That," Sasuke rasped, "was definitely unnecessary."_

 _Then, Sasuke collapsed, and Hinata fell with him._

* * *

"So you see," Hinata struggled to find the words after completing her story. "I owed Uchiha-san a life debt."

The elders groaned. Hinata wasn't sure that she had ever heard them make such an undignified response, but they groaned. They whispered amongst themselves while Hinata on her knees, her feet pinned beneath her, and sweat beginning to form at the base of her spine despite the fact that the room was exceedingly cool. She was used to speaking in front of large groups and appearing dignified after a great deal of practice, but it still made her feel like she was under a microscope. It made her skin crawl.

"Hinata," Hiashi grimaced, "I understand and appreciate your dedication to uphold this clan's honor, but I wish you had come to me with this information first." Standing gracefully from his seated position across form Hinata, Hiashi gestured for the elders to leave. "That should appease all of you for now."

Amidst their shuffling feet and grumbling, Hinata stared at the floor in front of her. Head slightly bowed and eyes downcast, she did not wish to see the look in her father's eyes that she was sure sat there.

Disappointment.

As the last elder shuffled out of the room, Hinata heard the sliding wood door softly close. She started fidgeting with her hands. Hiashi would surely have a lecture waiting for her now, and she really didn't want to hear it.

Deciding to break the tension first, Hinata began. "Otou-san let me—"

"Hinata, look at me."

Hinata hesitated. Taking a breath, she looked up into her father's eyes and found that he was not disappointed. He looked pained, with furrowed brows.

Hiashi sat back down in front of Hinata, within arm's reach this time. "You should have come to me with this information before going to the council meeting, Hinata." Hiashi griped. "This mess would have been handled better if you had warned me." Hiashi narrowed his eyes, studying his daughter's face.

"I don't understand," Hinata murmured, leaning forward.

Sighing, Hiashi patted her knee. "I sincerely hope that you won't have to understand. We will have to wait and see." Hiashi trailed off, his eyes glossing over slightly. "Now, I'm sure your sister is waiting for us to come to dinner. You go ahead, I will be there shortly."

Hinata nodded uncertainly. She didn't understand what her father was speaking to. He was being much more cryptic than he normally was.

"We will speak on this tomorrow, after I have reviewed clan documents to determine what your punishment will be."

Hinata nodded again. "Hai."

Carefully, she stood and left Hiashi to his thoughts. Hinata softly shut the sliding wooden door behind her and started down the hall, but not before she heard her father mutter to himself. "You have no idea what you have done." Which unsettled her greatly, filling her stomach with dread.

* * *

Kakashi sat in the Hokage's office stewing. Tsunade had made some choice words, after everyone else had left, and they weren't sitting right with him.

 _"So you decided to go easy on the boy?" Tsunade sighed dejectedly. She glanced out of the corner of her eye at Kakashi. "I don't think that was the wisest decision." Her voice was full of judgement and irritation._

" _I thought you supported the idea of keeping Sasuke alive?" Kakashi queried, not making eye contact with the Sanin._

" _I support keeping him alive," Tsunade hesitated, choosing her words carefully, "but I would have punished him publicly." Tsunade stood and crossed her arms beneath her bosom. "The council will not stand for it. The people will not stand for it. They will say that you were lenient, and favored him—And they will be right."_

Kakashi sighed.

Perhaps he had been too lenient on Sasuke. He couldn't help it though! The boy still felt like his responsibility. Staying confined to his house, being heavily sealed, and watched at all times will irritate him. Going further than that and physically punishing him would likely cause issues with Naruto, which he couldn't afford while they were all still trying to heal.

Three months was likely where he had made a mistake, but that was only for this stage. When Sasuke inevitably broke his required restrictions, he would double his time. Then his restrictions would be slowly removed. Sasuke wouldn't end up back on the roster for missions for at least a year if not more.

The end goal though, and his reasoning for not punishing him more harshly, was that he hoped that Sasuke could still lead a normal life someday. Itachi and the rest of the clan's deaths had more than paid for a chance for Sasuke at that.

Kakashi stood and looked out the windows to view the village. There was sure to be uproar over his decision with Sasuke, whether it was with the council, the public, or both. He'd have to plan for what he would do then in order to appease them.

He was really starting to regret taking this position at all.

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Hello everyone! Thank you for all the kind reviews! I hope that this flashback and present sequence wasn't too confusing._

 _Any comments or criticism? Review!_

 _Thank you!_


	3. PART ONE: Chapter 3

_Author's Note: I'm taking some liberties. It's a fanfiction. So this is no longer following the guidelines from the show or the movies. If something that happened in the anime, manga, or movies is relevant, I will go through that in the story._

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

PART ONE

Chapter Three: One Cage for Another

After last night's quiet dinner with her father and Hanabi, Hinata had gone to bed early. The day had taken a lot out of her. Her bed had been welcomingly soft and warm. Definitely a safe haven for her. At least it was until she woke up crying from her nightmares and crying out for "Neji-nii-san!"

The maids used to come running when she woke up crying and heaving, but they knew to leave her alone now. Two months of the same nightmare, with no reprieve, made it so she had a routine when she woke up.

Hinata pressed her hands to her face and forced herself to calm down. It was a memory. It wasn't happening right now.

After calming herself down, Hinata carefully extracted herself from her sweat soaked sheets. She had fallen on her face trying to hastily get out of the covers more than a couple times. Apparently she thrashed around enough in her sleep that the sheets wrapped themselves around her like seaweed.

Quickly, she stripped the sheets from the bed. It helped give her a sense of control to clean her room herself, and the maids were more than happy to let her.

Tossing the sheets in the hamper inside her closet, she quickly changed into black training clothes. She was already sweating, so she might as well continue to sweat and go train.

Hinata glanced at the digital clock on the small nightstand beside her bed. It was just before 4:00 a.m., so she still had a great deal of time before the rest of the house would be awake. Nodding to herself, Hinata jumped out her bedroom window into the dewing morning. It had rained last night and was still drizzling this morning. This time of year was always like this in Konoha. Rains late at night and early in the morning, until the sun broke through around mid-morning, creating an ultimately warm and sunny day. It wasn't particularly her favorite time of year, but she appreciated the cool mornings for training purposes. Sometimes there was even fog, which allowed her to practice more interesting techniques.

At the training grounds, Hinata took the first field she came to with three logs standing up straight to act as practice dummies.

First stretching herself out on the muddy grounds, Hinata made sure that her fitful sleep had not tightened up any muscles. It took a while, but she warmed up all of her joints and worked out all of the knots that she had made in her sleep.

Sighing, Hinata centered herself.

"Byakugan!"

And proceeded to tear apart the training grounds for the next four hours.

* * *

Sasuke was extremely irritated. They were finally letting him out of his cell for good today, and now the bastards were stalling.

"What's the hold up!" Sasuke snapped at the ANBU guards just outside his cage.

The two blatantly ignored him, and continued to stare straight ahead at the blank wall in front of them.

The cell was relatively small – small enough that Sasuke could touch opposite walls while laying down. There were no windows to his cell or to the entire floor level they were on as far as he could tell. The air was cool and musky, suggesting that they were deep underground. Most likely under the Hokage monument. There were no other prisoners locked up around him either. He wasn't sure if that was a safety concern and they had moved them, or if Konoha just had that little crime.

He had a feeling it was the later, but his pride wanted to believe it was a safety concern. He hadn't been much of a safety concern lately, especially since his chakra has been so low. Most of the time he just felt extremely ill, and he could feel the dark circles that were definitely forming under his eyes.

Sasuke glanced at the ANBU guarding his cell.

Whenever he made eye contact with people, they flinched away. His sharingan weren't even able to come forth, but people were still terrified. That included the ANBU. At the very least, they were wary of him, which was saying a lot for an ANBU. Nothing was supposed to bother them.

He figured his face looking the way it did probably didn't help too. Definitely put people on edge.

He was used to that, of course, and he most certainly did not care what anyone thought of him, but sometimes it got old. People constantly flinching away or staring at him, looking horrified. It was annoying and tedious. People were so very tiring.

Sasuke sighed.

Once he got out of here, he would be confined to his compound until it was deemed he was no longer a threat to the village. That would likely take longer than 3 months, no matter what Kakashi said. But then what? What would he do after they decided he was allowed to be in their village? Be some sort of weapon for the village? That's most likely what the village would want. That, and more sharingan children for their future. He could hold off on marrying and having children though. To the point that he could truly be the last Uchiha.

That thought made his chest twinge. Being the last of his kind had been painful when he was a child, and thought the only other Uchiha in the world was his brother, but now…

Now he truly was alone.

The ANBU outside Sasuke's cell began to fidget. "Are you planning to let me out sometime today, or what?" Sasuke hissed. Being in a cell for two months before his trial had made him more irritable than usual. He figured he'd be dead by now though, and done with the whole cell thing. Now they were just making him wait for however long they wanted again, and it was infuriating. Sasuke did not enjoy being left to the whims of someone else.

"Actually, Uchiha, that's exactly why we're here." Tsunade interrupted, a smug look stretching across her face. Sasuke hadn't heard her coming or felt her chakra. He really needed to get these chakra restraints off. They were starting to make him look bad.

"Well it's about time." Sasuke snapped.

Tsunade's smirk grew as she approached his cell door. "Oh, now you're eager to be a part of Konoha."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "I'm eager to get the hell out of this cell."

When Tsudnade didn't show any intention of unlocking his cell, Sasuke tensed. "What's the hold up?"

"We're just waiting on one more to join us," Tsunade replied, smirk wide as ever.

Sasuke grunted. Not wanting to provide Tsunade with any further satisfaction. He tried to seem aloof about the whole situation, but he was growing more tense as the time went by. _What's taking so long?_ He did not like to be left waiting. Kakashi's habit of being late when Sasuke was a genin left him with a mild obsession with promptness. Sasuke couldn't stand being late, and he especially couldn't stand it when other people were late. It always felt like a play at superiority. As if the person leaving him waiting thought that wasting his time meant that they had some power over him, or that their time was more important.

Sasuke certainly believed that his time was the most important time, and whoever they were waiting on, was wasting his very precious time.

"Ah, Hinata-chan. Thank you for joining us," Tsunade chided.

To the Hyugga's credit, she had the good sense to look embarrassed. Her face flushing bright red at the mild admonishment from the former Hokage. The bright blush across her face caused the Hyuuga's eyes to stand out even more so than usual. The Hyuuga eyes were something Sasuke remembered as unyielding and hard to look at. This Hyuuga's eyes just looked sad, empty, and rather pitiable.

The thought made Sasuke somewhat uncomfortable.

"My apologies Tsunade-sama."

"No matter," Tsunade waved off the Hyuuga's apology. "Hinata-chan will be assisting me today in sealing your chakra and eyes, Uchiha."

Sasuke flinched. He did not want to feel any more weak than he already did. Being in Konoha wasn't safe for him, especially to be stuck here and so hindered. He wouldn't be able to protect himself when someone came looking for him to try and kill him. Whether it was a ninja who was hired to kill him or a villager who felt wronged by him—he wouldn't be able to fully protect himself, and that made his skin crawl.

"How…extensive will this sealing be?" Sasuke snarled, his voice low.

"That depends on you." Tsunade deadpanned. "The more you behave, the fewer seals you will have. Until then, you will have several seals, for as long as we see necessary."

"So, essentially, you're moving me from one prison to another." Sasuke's eyes narrowed.

"Yes. That's precisely what's happening." Tsunade smiled wide, her eyes lighting up with mirth.

"I'm surprised the Dobe's ok with this." Sasuke muttered to himself. Normally, he wouldn't have actually said that aloud, but he was absolutely exhausted, and his filter was failing him.

"Naruto had no other choice. This was the only way." Hinata replied, her voice sounding hollow.

"Tch. Figures." Sasuke snorted. Of course Naruto would take the first offer they gave to keep Sasuke around.

"Well, shall we?" Sasuke asked lazily, already tired of this conversation.

Tsunade tapped the shoulder of the ANBU standing next to her, and the cell opened with a lurch. The front bars descending into the floor. Evidently there was some sort of chakra network in the cell that allowed the ANBU to open it that way. Sasuke had wondered how that had worked. He hadn't seen a door or a latch, and he hadn't been awake when they transported him. A part of him thought that the cell had simply been built around him, but apparently not.

Sasuke stepped out into the hall, to stand between the Hyuuga and the former Hokage, his chakra restraints clanking with every movement he made.

"Follow me." Tsunade commanded, turning around and motioning for the group to fall her further into the prison.

"Where are we going?" Sasuke probed, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"You'll see." Tsunade called back to him, a smile in her voice.

Sasuke glanced at the Hyuuga next to him. A part of him was still mildly surprised that she was a shinobi, let alone an ANBU. She only came up to his chest, definitely shorter than Sakura, and her frame was not an athletic build. She did carry herself in a way that made it clear she was toned, even though her two sizes too large jacket would suggest otherwise.

Sasuke tried to gather whether the Hyuuga new where they were going from looking at her face. Her eyebrows were raised and slightly together, her lips slightly pursed.

She had no idea.

Sasuke sighed. "After you."

* * *

Hinata caught up to Tsunade quickly. Their footsteps echoed in the hall, rebounding off the cement walls and floor. Being this far underground made Hinata mildly uncomfortable. Which is why she had been late in the first place. She claustrophobic or anything. She was just uncomfortable with the idea of being buried alive.

"Tsunade-sama, why am I here, exactly?" Hinata asked quietly, not wanting Sasuke to hear that she wasn't aware of what was going on.

"You are here to assist me today, Hinata-chan." Tsunade replied, as if that was supposed to make sense to Hinata.

"To assist with…wh-what?" Hinata hesitated, cursing her stutter. It only came out every now and again nowadays. And only when she was nervous or extremely tired. She had worked very hard for the stutter to fade away, but it still lingered.

"With the sealing, of course."

Hinata flinched. Hard.

"Tsudnade-sama, I cannot—"

"You can, and you will." Tsunade curtly replied.

"But I—" Tsunade cut Hinata a narrow eyed glare, and Hinata's words died in her mouth. "H-hai. Tsunade-sama."

Hinata followed Tsunade the rest of the way, just a step and a half behind the former Hokage, with Sasuke and the two ANBU bringing up the rear.

Hinata's gut twisted and turned the whole way. She was not comfortable with this situation. Not one bit. She has always been very sensitive to the seals that her family is known for, and she doubted that she would ever not be sensitive to about the subject of the caged bird seal. Hinata despised this piece of her family's heritage. It was cruel, demeaning, and painful. The turmoil the caged bird seal had caused her cousin Neji made this a particularly sensitive subject for Hinata.

She knew all too well all the pain and suffering it caused, and she did not feel comfortable bestowing that upon someone else.

In an effort to eradicate the archaic family ritual, Hinata had studied it thoroughly. She had hoped that she could come up with a way to not only avoid using the seal in the future, but to reverse it. Hinata had hoped to one day remove Neji's seal, but…

When Hinata had been a child, she had vowed that she would make certain that her little sister, Hanabi, never wore the seal. And that she would do everything in her power to take away Neji's. One of those things came true, but through no help from Hinata. Hanabi had earned her fate the hard way. Through blood, sweat, and, Hinata imagined, most likely tears—though she could not remember ever seeing Hanabi cry.

"Here we are."

Tsunade's voice tore Hinata from her anxious musings.

Refocusing on her surroundings, Hinata took in the room they were now in.

The room, if you could call it that, was the size of the arena Naruto and Neji had fought in during their first chunin exams. The ceilings were so high, and the room was so dimly lit, Hinata couldn't see where the vaulting cement ceiling ended.

There were flickering torches that lined the room at just above eye level, causing the room to feel shrouded in mystery and rather spooky. Even though it actually appeared to be rather sterile, if stuffy. The lack of windows certainly didn't help, but that was to be expected this far underground.

"This doesn't feel human-sacrifice-y at all…" Sasuke muttered. Hinata wasn't sure if he was being sarcastic or not. She had to agree though. It certainly did feel like a place to sacrifice a body.

"Don't be ridiculous." Tsunade snorted from the center of the room. "If I remember your file correctly, Sasuke, you've been here before. To seal the cursed seal mark you have on your shoulder."

Hinata's eyes widened. Tsunade sounded so nonchalant mentioning Sasuke's cursed seal mark, as if it was supposed to be common knowledge. Hinata glanced back and forth between Sasuke and Tsunade, sensing the uncomfortable air between them. _That definitely sounds like something that Sasuke wanted to keep to himself._

"Forgive me, I don't completely remember what happened after being bitten by your psychopathic ex-teammate. I do remember being in a great deal of pain, and being confused, but that's about it." Sasuke sneered.

Trying to cut the tension, Hinata interjected. "Why are we here, Tsunade-sama?"

"This is where we will be performing Sasuke's sealing." Tsunade replied, circling the room, dusting the floor with her foot as she went. "ANBU, will you come over here and lend me a hand?"

Hinata heard two yeses and the ANBU that had been behind her a moment ago were now in front of her, helping Tsunade clear off the floor. Trying to understand what they were doing, Hinata watched Tsunade and the ANBU. Confused, Hinata opened her mouth to ask, but quickly realized she had missed something.

The floor was covered in paint. The room was a giant ring, with smaller rings inside it, until there was a small enough ring at the very center that was only big enough for one person to sit in. They would be creating seals by hand for Sasuke, and placing them on him slowly. This was some advanced jutsu that Hinata had not yet performed on a living person.

The hair on the back of her neck went up.

She was not comfortable with this at all.

* * *

Hinata glanced back at Sasuke, trying to evaluate his comfort level with this. He appeared as stoic as ever, a little grimy and irritated, but that made sense. Given his being in jail for two months. His hair was unkempt and needed a trim, and he looked as if he had lost some weight. As far as Hinata knew, they had been feeding Sasuke well, but she wouldn't be surprised if he had been refusing to eat. It was either that, or he had lost that much muscle mass, but Hinata seriously doubt that.

"Come here, Uchiha." Tsunade gestured for Sasuke to come to the center of the room, it was the only area without markings on the floor.

Sasuke begrudgingly obeyed.

It was clear from the way he moved and his lips forming a thin line that he did not appreciate being told what to do. Tsunade being rather smug about ordering him around didn't help either. Hinata wasn't sure what particularly grated the two about each other. Sasuke had left shortly after Tsunade became the Fifth Hokage. That didn't seem like enough time to create such animosity, but Hinata guessed it had more to do with all the events that followed after Sasuke's leaving the village.

Naruto had been devastated at first, but found determination in getting Sasuke back. Sakura had been beyond distraught for years, and in some ways, she still was. Sasuke wasn't the same boy now that he had been when he left Konoha. He had been through far too much since then to be the same. The two were some of Tsunade's important people, and that surely affected her opinion of Sasuke. Plus, there was all the trouble he had caused for Konoha while serving Orochimaru and his own personal endeavors.

Sasuke walked towards Tsunade at a sluggish pace. His eyes were narrowed and his features were pinched. He was trying to evaluate the situation and come up with a solution, but he didn't have a clue what was being sealed or how. Plus, he had little to no chakra running through his body. Hinata could see that without activating her Byakugan. Sasuke's chakra was seriously and dangerously depleted.

"Sit down, Uchiha." Tsunade hissed, placing a hand on Sasuke's shoulder and pushing him to the ground.

Sasuke grunted.

Tsunade gestured for the ANBU to remove Sasuke's restraints. "He won't be a threat during this. I need him to be able to move and create chakra after this. He's weak enough as it is, I don't want this sealing to push him over the edge and kill him." Tsunade grumbled, crossing her arms under her chest. "I'd never hear the end of it from Naruto if he died now." She muttered, shaking her head.

The ANBU moved quickly in unison. Removing the shackles from Sasuke's ankles and the Chakra restraints from his wrists. The restraints fell, banging against the cement ground. Apparently the restraints had been weights as well.

"Hinata, come here." Tsunade beckoned, dismissing the ANBU in the same gesture.

The two masked figures jumped out of the way and to the edges of the sealing circle. Removing themselves so that they were no longer in the way, while remaining close enough, that if necessary, they would be able to intervene.

Hinata carefully maneuvered to the center of the circle, avoiding stepping on the markings along the floor. She still did not feel comfortable with this. From what she could see, it appeared that they would be setting several seals simultaneously. Sasuke would undoubtedly pass out from the pain, if not from the abrupt loss of chakra.

Standing next to Tsunade, Hinata's anxiety began to wane. This was necessary if Sasuke was to remain inside the village. That was what Naruto wanted. So, Hinata would do what she could to help make that happen.

"Remove your shirt."

"Excuse me?" Sasuke turned, glaring at Tsunade.

"I said remove your shirt. It's necessary for the sealing."

Sasuke sighed, obviously annoyed by the request, but did as she asked. It was necessary for the sealing, and Sasuke didn't seem like the type to play dumb and ask why they needed him to. He moved slowly though, showing his irritation by doing everything at a leisurely pace. It was pretty much his only way of rebelling at this point, so it made sense that he was doing it.

 _It's almost childish…_ Hinata thought. _It's like that childish rebellion where you know that you have to listen to the adult, but you make sure they know you don't want to do anything they say._ Hinata vaguely remember Hanabi and Neji behaving this way with the Hyuuga elders at times. Neji was somewhat iffy, with how rigid and focused he was. It didn't make sense for such a stoic person to behave in such a way, but Hinata remembered a time when Neji was bitter and unwise. It was only after Hizashi's death that Neji behaved in such a way. It was short lived, but Hinata remembered Neji moving slowly to fetch things for the elder's, or taking his time to train when he was capable of moving much faster.

Watching Sasuke behave that way made her feel a little sad. It made him seem like a wounded animal with too much pride. Plus, thinking of Neji still made her chest ache.

Hinata shook her head. Ridding herself of the negative thoughts that were creeping in. This sealing would take several hours. She needed to be beyond focused. Especially if Tsunade was asking for what she feared she was.

Looking down at the now shirtless Uchiha, Hinata felt her cheeks redden from embarrassment for the Uchiha. He looked vulnerable in front of everyone, and not in the healthy way. Being imprisoned did not suit him. Hinata had been right, he had lost weight. His bones were much more pronounced than they should have been for someone of his build and age. Hinata could have counted his vertebrae running down his back like jagged rocks they protruded so badly.

It made her uncomfortable to see him this way.

It made her feel bad for him.

Sasuke's cursed mark seal that Hinata had heard about was no longer present. She remembered one of the Rookie 9 mentioning that it was on his shoulder, but she saw nothing that looked like a sealing tattoo there. She did see that Sasuke was riddled with scars. Some looked as though they were the results of training too aggressively, while others looked like they were seriously close calls. There were some angry looking scars along the left side of his body, covering his ribs, chest, and arm, with a summoning tattoo that ran up his left forearm.

Hinata's eyes roamed Sasuke's body, searching for other possible seals that could interact with the seals they were about to create. She made it to Sasuke's neck when she realized that he was staring her down.

Hinata felt her face and neck heat up from embarrassment. She wasn't doing anything that she shouldn't have been. Evaluating the person about to be sealed was standard. Making sure that no conflicting seals are present ensures the wellbeing of the person about to be sealed.

Sasuke raised an unamused eyebrow at Hinata, then moved his gaze to Tsunade.

"Face forward, Uchiha," Tsunade hissed. "Now, Hinata, this is what I was planning to do." Tsunade said, taking a scroll out from her sleeves. "Familiarize yourself with this. Quickly, please."

Hinata nodded, taking in the sealing explanation and directions quickly. "So, this is a seal that you have created specifically for Uchiha-san?" Hinata questioned, eyes never leaving the scroll as she quickly caught up on the material.

Tsunade nodded her head, marking the floor around Sasuke, creating a circle of writing around him. "You'll notice that there is more than one seal there." Tsunade hummed, beginning lines of writing towards Sasuke.

"If I understand…it appears that there are four seals that we will be creating today." Hinata looked up to judge Tsunade's reaction. Four seals was excessive and would be life threatening to the last Uchiha.

Tsunade seemed unbothered by the uncertainty in Hinata's voice, simply nodding as she began writing on Sasuke's body. "Well, one of them is more like…five individual seals to create one large seal, and then there are three separate seals from that."

Hinata's eyes widened. That was definitely excessive. Eyes bouncing between Tsunade and the Uchiha, Hinata waited for Sasuke to protest.

When Sasuke didn't say a word, Hinata's stomach churned.

"Tsunade-sama, I don't doubt your judgement, but—"

"Then don't doubt my judgement." Tsunade grinned. The smile didn't reach her eyes and felt much more like a threat.

"Ts-tsunade-sama, this is extremely unsafe. There is no way—" Hinata's words died on her lips when she saw the expression on Tsunade's face. She was going to do this with or without the Hyuuga's help, but it would be safer with the Hyuuga's assistance.

Hinata took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Does the Hokage know what seals we are about to attempt?" Hinata quietly asked, her eyes remaining closed.

"More or less," Tsunade shrugged, finishing up the writing that now covered a majority of the Uchiha's right arm, back, and chest. " I hoped to create these seals simultaneously in order for them to ensure their effectiveness." Tsunade's eyes narrowed, assessing her handywork.

"So," Hinata tensed, not wanting to suggest something worse for Sasuke, but she needed to be sure. "We are not performing the caged bird seal today?"

Tsunade snorted.

"No, we are not performing anything nearly as permanent…" Tsunade paused, arms folding under her chest. "One of them is derived from the caged bird, so in a sense…" Tsunade trailed off, shrugging. "That's why I asked you here today Hinata-chan. You know so much about the caged bird seal, you're the perfect assistant for this."

Hinata's insides squirmed. She did not feel comfortable assisting with this. In order for the sealing to be successful and not result in Sasuke's death…

Hinata's eyes trailed to the back of Sasuke's head. She stared at the Uchiha's mess of inky hair, and contemplated the consequences of refusing to assist Tsunade against the guilt of performing a seal so similar to the greatest shame of her clan.

"How can I help?"

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Thank you for reading and please review!_


	4. PART ONE: Chapter 4

_Author's Note:_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

* * *

PART ONE

Chapter Four: Seals and Bandages

Sasuke woke to a raging headache, again. This was staring to become a norm for him, and he was definitely not a fan. Groaning, Sasuke opened his eyes and saw nothing. Just a great big blackness.

Panic slithered up his spine and tightened his chest.

Trying to keep his breathing even, Sasuke pushed himself up, but he didn't move. He remained in the same spot, even though he had told his body to move. Panic pooled in Sasuke's gut. He was either blind and paralyzed, or blindfolded and strapped down.

Sasuke tried to move again to no avail.

He didn't feel as though he was restrained. He knew what that felt like. He'd been restrained enough to know what just about any restraints felt like. From being tied up, strapped to a bed, or shackled in prison. He was well acquainted with those possibilities. Usually, he was able to free himself by summoning his chakra, and if he remembered correctly, the ANBU had removed those chakra restraints for his sealing.

Sasuke centered himself and summoned his chakra.

And nothing happened. Again.

The idea of being blind and paralyzed sent Sasuke into a full blown panic. He could feel his heart racing, so he knew he wasn't dead. That was a start, but didn't help with his fear of being locked in his own mind. Focusing on his possible surroundings, Sasuke took stock of his remaining senses.

He felt warm, slightly clammy, but warm. He couldn't move his hands to feel his surroundings, but it felt like he was covered and clothed, which was a good sign. He didn't feel wind or any other elements, so he wasn't outside, another good sign. His body hadn't been dumped to rot, so he had that going for him. The air smelt sterile and full of chemicals, which did not reassure Sasuke.

He couldn't hear much either, aside from his own breathing, the rush of air through some sort of ventilation, and quiet footsteps a distance away from himself. At least he wasn't underground anymore. He had the inkling that he was in Konoha's hospital though, and that did not make him feel safe or calm. If anything, it confirmed his suspicions.

Sasuke felt sick. He hadn't felt this vulnerable and weak since being laid up in the hospital because of Itachi when he was a genin.

 _Technically…still a genin_ , Sasuke thought bitterly. He was going to die a genin, and Naruto would end up being Hokage. That made Sasuke exceptionally irritated. He appreciated all that Naruto has done for him, to an extent, and didn't wish him ill will. That didn't mean he wished him to be a better ninja than himself. Sasuke had always been competitive with Naruto. Even before he knew that a great deal of Naruto's power came from the nine-tailed beast inside of him.

The sound of a door sliding open, and someone walking towards him made Sasuke breathe a sigh of relief.

"Sasuke-kun, are you awake?"

Sasuke tensed.

"You are awake Sasuke-kun! Thank goodness!" Sakura squealed, grabbing the limp Uchiha. This did not feel like a safe situation at all. In all of Sasuke's life he had never worried that he would be at the mercy of Haruno Sakura, but here he was.

"Let go of me Sakura," Sasuke wheezed, having trouble breathing from the death grip she had him locked in.

"O-oh, sorry, Sasuke-kun." Sakura stumbled over her words, startled at Sasuke's shortness with her. "I was just so happy to see that you're here and awake! It's wonderful!" Sakura gushed. "I just thought I'd catch a moment alone with you while I can. I'm so happy you've come back to Konoha! We can go back to being team seven again soon! And you and Naruto ca—"

"Sakura!" Sasuke shouted, "Stop. Talking." Sasuke's head throbbed. He could hear Sakura's breath hitch and imagined she had a wounded look on her face. Sasuke wanted to roll his eyes, but without being able to see or move much, it seemed pointless.

"What are you doing here anyway?" He was definitely not in the mood to talk to or tolerate Sakura. If she wasn't here for the purpose of healing him, she could leave. They may have been team mates at one time, and he respected her abilities, but he did not enjoy her company enough to be alone with her.

"I came to see you with Hinata-chan. She said that she needed to check in on you, and I wanted to come visit you, so I…" Sakura trailed off. She still sounded like a little girl with a crush when it came to him. It made his skin crawl.

"Well, you've seen me." Sasuke snapped. "You can leave now."

Sasuke heard a quiet set of footsteps shuffle to the door of his room and hesitate. It must be the Hyuuga girl that Sakura mentioned. The one who had helped Tsunade with his sealing.

Sasuke flinched. Memories of the sealing coming back to him. His body felt like it was on fire all over again just remembering what had happened. Sasuke was aware that sealing was uncomfortable. He knew that it wouldn't be a picnic, but he didn't think it would hurt as badly as it had. It felt like every chakra point in his body was on fire and on the verge of exploding.

It had not been a pleasant experience to say the least.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. He could feel the Hyuuga out there feeling uncomfortable about intruding on whatever this "moment" Sakura thought she should be having with him.

"You can come in, Hyuuga."

* * *

The ex-heiress shuffled her feet awkwardly in the hallway. She did not feel comfortable intruding on Sakura's time with her special person, but Hinata needed to get in there and check on Sasuke. Normally, Sakura would be plenty qualified to exam Sasuke herself, but Tsunade had requested that Hinata handle the examination specifically.

Hinata had a feeling that it had more to do with Sakura's infatuation than with Hinata's own abilities.

Sakura had a difficult time remaining objective when it came to Sasuke. It made sense. Hinata didn't blame the pink haired kunoichi. Sakura had loved Sasuke for most of her life. She had begged Naruto to return Sasuke to her and the leaf village. She had fought so hard to become stronger to be on par with her teammates, and yet…

Hinata felt a pang of sympathy for Sakura. It appeared doubtful that Sasuke would ever return her feelings of affection. Hinata could relate.

"Are you coming in or what, Hyuuga?"

Hinata sighed. It appeared that Sasuke was determined to have her interrupt what she knew Sakura had hoped to be a special moment alone with Sasuke. Biting her lip, Hinata slid the door open to Sasuke's hospital room.

The room was a pale blue, like a majority of the hospital's newer rooms. The floor was a weird not quite green, not quite blue tile, the bedding was a light blue, and the walls were a light blue. The curtains were a bright white, and the furniture was off-white. Overall, it was clear that someone had taken care to try to make the room look as comfortable as possible, but failed terribly. The room looked sterile and uncomfortable, most hospital rooms did.

Well, most hospital rooms also had some sort of flowers or decoration from loved ones for the patient to show that they are cared for. That their good health mattes to someone.

There were no flowers or pictures or cards in Sasuke's room. Hinata was somewhat surprised. It made sense though. Naruto was too busy to bring something, if he did even have the time to stop by. Kakashi was also too busy, even if he did stop by he knew something of sentiment would be wasted on Sasuke. It was odd that Sakura hadn't brought something though.

Hinata glanced at the pink haired kunoichi. Sakura didn't really have the time to stop and grab something for Sasuke either. She had only just found out that Sasuke was in the hospital, and allowed to have visitors. Still, Hinata had always know Sakura to be the type to make that sort of effort. It was odd, that was for sure.

"How are you feeling Uchiha-san?"

"I can't move and I can't see. How do you think I feel?"

Hinata winced. Tsunade had advised her of this possibility. The former Hokage had explained that this would likely happen and would be a result of the sealing. They knew it would take a toll on Sasuke. They just weren't sure how severely. Given that he was already awake and able to speak, it wasn't as bad as they had anticipated.

"Alright, let me take a look at you." Hinata approached the bed, going to the far side of his bed so that Sakura could remain where she was. Hinata reached out to touch Sasuke's arm and he flinched away. That gave Hinata pause. That was an unusual reaction, but it was best if she didn't make a big deal out of it.

From what Hinata could tell, Sasuke was similar to Neji in some ways. He was prideful, possibly even more so than Neji. Voicing any possible weakness would not help.

"I'm going to check your seals, Uchiha-san."

Sasuke responded with a short "hn."

Nodding her head, Hinata took Sasuke's right forearm and lifted the bandage. Sasuke had been out for a week with the bandages changed regularly, he would be able to have them removed now. He'd just need to have a light salve that he'd need to rub on them to prevent inflammation because of his chakra possibly being in turmoil.

Hinata eyed her handy work.

Sasuke now had five bold, black, rings on his right forearm. They were five individual chakra seals, going in order of least to greatest amount of chakra sealing, with 1/32 of his chakra in the ring closest to his wrist. As Sasuke shows his loyalty to the village, and proves that he is no longer a liability, he will receive more of his chakra.

Each ring will allow him access to a larger amount of his chakra once the seal is removed. The only person able to remove the seals would be either Hinata, Tsunade, or maybe Kakashi. Hinata wasn't sure if Kakashi actually knew Tsunade had gone through with this seal. It made Hinata's gut churn. Bottling up chakra like this was dangerous. Sasuke wouldn't be able to push himself without risking his life, which was why the other seals were in place.

"Alright, Uchiha-san, I need to remove your shirt now. Are you still unable to move?" Hinata asked gently.

"Obviously." Sasuke sneered. "You can leave now, Sakura."

Hinata's heart panged with sympathy again for Sakura. Sasuke was so cold towards her. Glancing up at Sakura, Hinata watched as the kunoichi nodded her head dejectedly. Hinata wanted to tell Sakura she could stay, but knew that would be inappropriate. She just felt so bad for Sakura.

"I'll…I'll see you later, Sasuke-kun." Sakura said, uncertainly. Hinata watched Sakura leave the room, and she just looked downright forlorn.

Sighing, Hinata busied herself with maneuvering Sasuke so that she could easily remove his shirt.

"Once I remove your shirt, Uchiha-san, I will remove your bandages and check the rest of your seals." Hinata quietly supplied. Letting Sasuke know what she was doing so there were no surprises. She felt kind of bad, moving him around like this, when he couldn't see and couldn't defend himself, but it was necessary.

"Hn," Sasuke grunted. "How long have I been out and why can't I see?"

Hinata hummed lightly, fingers nimbly and quickly removing Sasuke's shirt. Her fingers ghosted against his skin, but Hinata did her best not to linger. She imagined the feeling was uncomfortable for Sasuke.

Once his shirt was removed, Hinata decided how to respond to the Uchiha without Tsunade present. He likely wouldn't see Tsunade for some time. She was head of the hospital now and her skills were constantly required one way or another.

"Well, you passed out by the end of the sealing, which…" Hinata hesitated, "was admirable, considering." Hinata removed the bandage around Sasuke's chest and upper back. Sasuke had to lean against her chest as she removed the bandages so that he would not fall. She moved as quickly as possible, as she did not feel comfortable basically embracing the Uchiha. Hopefully his strength would return shortly so that he would be able to support himself.

"You've been in the hospital for three days. It's surprising that you're awake already, to be honest. That kind of sealing is a lot to take for anyone." Hinata murmured, maneuvering Sasuke so he could sit up in his bed, pillows keeping him upright.

Hinata began removing the final bandages about Sasuke's shoulders.

"The blindness was expected. This type of sealing depletes a large amount of chakra. Because of your dojutsu, it makes sense that your eyesight is temporarily lost. It should return within the next day or—"

"What?!" Sasuke hissed. "So I'm stuck like this?!"

Hinata sighed. "Uchiha-san, your eyesight should return tomorrow or the next day. Your chakra had been so greatly depleted by the end of the sealing, that your body is struggling to regain normal chakra levels."

The final bandage removed, Hinata checked the three seals that remained.

Sasuke now had a seal at the base of his neck, just above in between his shoulders. A shirt would be able to cover it for the most part, the top could be visible. This seal was the one that Tsunade had based off the caged bird seal. The marking was the same, the "X" was prominent and centered, but it was black instead of green and it was surrounded by a circle that looked as if it was on fire. This would make it so that Sasuke was unable to summon his dojutsu until the seal was removed.

This seal looked angry. It had healed nicely, but Sasuke's chakra was fighting this seal. Hinata did not want to tell Sasuke about this seal, but it needed to be done. Shaking her head, and making a note to remind herself to look at the seal again with her Byakugan, Hinata moved on to his other two seals.

There was another seal in between his shoulders, just below the one that mimicked the caged bird seal, which ensured that Sasuke was unable to leave the village. This one was a simple binding seal. It made it so that Sasuke was only able to leave unless the seal was removed. It essentially tethered him to the village. This would likely be one the last seals to be removed.

The final seal was on the left side of Sasuke's chest. The symbols "life" and "death" were on his left pectoral, life above death, with a circle that looked like it was on fire surrounding the symbols. This seal was more dangerous one that made Hinata extremely uncomfortable. This seal was intricately laced into the chakra around Sasuke's heart. A minimal amount of another's chakra and blood applied to the seal, with the correct hand sign, would instantly kill the Uchiha, seizing his heart's movement and severing the chakra pathways. It was basically a direct juken to the heart, and it made Hinata extremely uneasy.

Hinata was unsure of when, if ever, this seal would be removed from Sasuke's chest.

Taking in the Uchiha's appearance, Hinata decided to wrap up her examination. Quickly, Hinata activated her Byakugan to check Sasuke's chakra pathways and internal organs.

Sasuke's chakra level was still severely depleted. It would take him at least two days before he could move on his own, if not more. The seals stood out in his chakra network. His chakra was trying to fight them still, but that would pass shortly. His body would accept the seals in the next couple days.

Normally, this wouldn't happen, but because they had acted hastily and completed so many seals on Sasuke at once, it left his chakra network in a type of shock.

It appeared, though, that his chakra was fighting the seal and the bas of his neck the most. That one had looked irritated on Sasuke's skin, so it made sense that it would be the one that his chakra network was rejecting. He might even be encouraging it unconsciously.

Nodding her head, Hinata made some quick decisions. She'd need to add some additional marks to Sasuke's seal if it didn't calm down, or she'd have to perform gentle fist to alleviate the chakra mass that was building there. Hinata really didn't want to put his body through that again so soon. Neither option would be comfortable.

"Alright," Hinata positioned Sasuke so he could sit comfortably. "Your seals seem to be mending well for the most part. They no longer need to be bandaged, but they will need a salve to continue healing."

Hinata removed a salve from her weapons pouch and placed it on the side table beside Sasuke's bed. It was a medium sized container of a general healing salve she had made herself. It would help Sasuke with his seals, and if he had any leftover, would help any future wounds he could have.

Stepping away from the bed, Hinata grabbed a stool from the corner. Sitting down, Hinata decided she would explain all of the seals to Sasuke and show him their placement on his body for the foreseeable future.

Picking up Sasuke's right arm again, Hinata pointed to the five rings of seals there. "The seals on your arm, they restrict the amount of chakra that is accessible for ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu. As each seal is released, you will receive more of your chakra." Hinata searched Sasuke's face for understanding, but his dark eyes just stared straight ahead at nothing.

Hinata lightly touched Sasuke's back. "The seal between your shoulders tethers you to the village, making it so that you are unable to leave, and if you try…" Hinata trailed off, honestly unsure of how that seal would react. Tsunade had applied that seal, so it depended on what hand signs she had made. "…it won't be pleasant." Hinata summarized.

"The seal on your chest," Hinata gently pressed two fingers to the chest seal, "is an immediate kill seal. This will only be used as a last resort."

The petite kunoichi hesitated, she really did not want to mention the final seal. She felt terrible about it, on various levels. There was the shame that it was based on the seal of her clan, there was the fact that she had assisted, and there was the sad understanding she had of not being able to use a dojutsu. She couldn't imagine not having access to her Byakugan now. It was a part of her in an intricate way. It was a part of her identity. To not have access to it…

Hinata shivered.

"Spit it out, Hyuuga." Sasuke said, trying to sound intimidating, but he ended up sounding fragile. The idea of his dojutsu being sealed had already crossed his mind.

"The final seal at the base of your neck…" Hinata paused, uncertain how Sasuke would react. "It seals your dojutsu until it can be determined that you are no longer a threat to the village."

The room felt like it was full of electricity for a moment. Like the calm before a typhoon.

"Get out." Sasuke snarled.

Hinata didn't move right away. The overwhelming feeling of guilt washed over her in waves. She had told herself that she would never do what had been done to Neji to anyone else. And here she was, breaking her promise.

"Get. Out."

Jumping out of her seat and tears springing to her eyes, Hinata brought a trembling hand to her lips. "I'm so sorry, Uchiha-san," Hinata whispered before running out of the Uchiha's room, leaving him in his new prison.

* * *

Sasuke sat there for a while, after the Hyuuga left, just fuming.

Tsunade hadn't said what seals she would be performing on him. She'd alluded to them when she was talking to the Hyuuga about it, but that hadn't been much for Sasuke to go off of. He'd figured they would tether him to the village somehow, and have some sort of punishment for him not doing whatever it is Kakashi expects him to do.

He did not expect them to take his chakra and seal his eyes.

Sasuke felt like he was on fire. Partly from rage and partly from the pain of his chakra being so severely low. He hadn't been in this kind of physical pain in a long time. When he felt this way, he needed to spar or train. As far as he could tell, that wouldn't be an option any time soon.

He really wished he had just died in the war.

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _I'm debating on how slow I want to move things along. The pace is going to pick up a bit next chapter, but I'm bouncing between 2 days, 2 weeks, and 2 months. What would you guys prefer?_

 _Thank you for reading! Don't forget to review!_


	5. PART ONE: Chapter 5

_Author's Note:_

 _Whoever is reviewing and saying "Kill yourself, Ashley." Who is Ashley? And what is your goal exactly? Lol._

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

PART ONE

Chapter Five: Home Sweet Home

Sasuke's sight came back sometime that night. He slept restlessly. Between the nightmares of Itachi and his general physical pain, whatever sleep he got felt like nothing. His nightmares didn't use to plague him as badly, but being back in the leaf village seemed to put them in overdrive. Sasuke just hoped that they would subside again, like they did when he was younger.

Sighing, Sasuke rubbed his face in frustration.

It'd been two days since he woke up and he'd only just been able to start moving again, and his muscles were insanely stiff. The nurses were extra handsy with him, which was beyond inappropriate, and weird considering he thought they would be terrified of him.

Apparently his reputation didn't keep women from having some sort of interest in him. Sasuke would have to do something about that as soon as possible. He just wasn't sure what, exactly, he should do to prevent that if being an enemy of the village for the past several years didn't do it.

 _Women._ Sasuke thought bitterly, rolling his eyes.

Sakura had even come by to visit him again yesterday, which had been exceedingly awkward. He didn't dislike Sakura. He just didn't feel the same way about her as she did about him, and he never would. It was plain and simple. Sakura just had a hard time understanding it apparently.

Now he was stuck waiting on her and her mentor.

The thought of Tsunade made his teeth grind. He was still enraged that she and the Hyuuga had sealed his eyes. Something that he felt was the only thing left that connected him to his family. Something that was so integral to his identity being taken from him…

Sasuke could feel his insides boiling with rage.

 _This woman better watch herself._

"Hello, Uchiha." Tsunade barged into Sasuke's room, disrupting his thoughts. He truly disliked this woman. He wanted to hate her, but a part of him commended her for having the resolve to protect her people the way she did, even if it was at his expense. That didn't mean he wouldn't take a chance to antagonize her every time he could.

Purposefully turning away from the door to his room, Sasuke ignored Tsunade and stared out his window. He did not want this woman to think he felt anything but indifference towards her. He didn't want her to know that she enraged him with her presence. He knew it would only bring her further satisfaction.

"Well, do you want to leave the hospital, or not?"

That got Sasuke's attention. The shock of it made him whip his head around.

Tsunade smirked at him from the doorway, Sakura trailing behind her looking somewhat uncertain if her presence was appropriate. "I just have to give you the all clear, and then you'll be sent home to finish out your probation under house arrest." Tsunade's smile widened.

"Will you be giving my things back then?" Sasuke growled, irritation rolling of him like lightning. "Or are you people just going to keep my sword forever?"

"Now that, I don't actually know." Tsunade smiled, giving Sasuke a quick examination, Sakura following closely behind her. Sasuke knew that Sakura was already a well-trained medic-nin, but here she was following Tsunade like a lost puppy in a new home.

Sasuke hadn't seen Sakura behave that way since they were kids, and he almost felt bad about it. He could only assume it was because he had snapped at her the other day, but most of him felt like she deserved the chastising. It was about time she realized her feelings were unwelcome. If this is what it took to get through to her, then so be it.

Tsunade didn't say what she was going to do like the Hyuuga did. She just did it. Moved him around like he was a doll and was definitely not gentle. He was still sore from the sealing and the whole not moving for a few days thing, but Tsunade didn't really seem to care about that. Sasuke almost missed the Hyuuga.

"I guess you'll just have to wait and see when you get your things back." Tsunade grinned, but it didn't reach her eyes. The sight made Sasuke mildly uncomfortable. He wasn't concerned for his safety or feeling threatened, it was just disconcerting to see. Especially on a face like Tsunade's.

"Hinata-chan did a good job of checking on your seals the other day. Everything seems in order. I'll have her check on you again soon, just to be sure." Tsunade trailed off, wiping her hands on her pants like she'd just touched something repulsive. Tsunade took a glance around Sasuke's room, amber eyes landing on Sasuke's bed side table,

"It looks like Hinata gave you a jar of healing salve…" Tsunade walked over to the table and picked up the slim jar. "Have you been using it?" Tsunade raised a suspicious eyebrow, not even looking at Sasuke while she spoke to him.

Sasuke, not one to be out done, also didn't give her the respect of making eye contact with her. "I used it on the arm seal, and it felt weird, so I stopped using it."

"Well that's dumb." Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Hinata's healing salves are amazing. Whenever she makes them in bulk, I take as many as I can off her hands. They're extremely well made and their use is versatile. Not using it, or getting rid of it would be stupid. You should save any leftovers you have. That salve is like gold around here."

"And why should I trust the people who took my eyes away from me?" Sasuke snapped.

Tsunade glanced at him and shrugged. "Because from what I can tell, you don't have other people."

That stung Sasuke. He didn't need a reminder that he was alone. He already felt that way all the time. It was a constant waiting on him that he carried around in the hollow part of his chest. It weighed him down and sometimes made it hard to breathe.

"And," Tsunade snorted, twirling the jar of salve in her hands, "I have no reason to lie to you. Especially about Hinata."

Sasuke didn't feel like he could trust Tsunade farther than he could toss her, but the tone of her voice made it clear she was telling the truth. She was actually praising the Hyuuga's skills and telling him to use the salve. That surprised him. He still felt like he probably shouldn't use it, but he took the salve out of her hands and stuffed it into his pocket all the same.

Glancing between Tsunade and a surprisingly quiet Sakura, Sasuke got to his feet, somewhat slowly. "Are you taking me home now or what?"

Tsunade shook her head. "Actually, I'm leaving that honor to—"

"Sasuke bastard!" Naruto yelled, from what Sasuke could only assume was down the hallway. He could hear him quickly running and causing chaos.

"Dammit." Sasuke groaned.

* * *

Hinata walked through Konoha's marketplace. She had just returned from debriefing the Hokage about her mission, and she was dead tired.

The sun was bright and was already high. If she went home now, she'd likely sleep until tomorrow, and that felt too much like wasting the day.

Hinata hesitated She decided to run some errands before heading home and resting up a bit. Hinata mentally made a list of all the things she needed to do. Grab some groceries, wanted to visit some shops and friends while she was in town, and she definitely needed to grab some lunch or she'd be dead on her feet.

She hadn't seen any of her friends in a while, or if she had it was only in passing. Hinata didn't remember the last time she had spoken with Tenten, or Ino, or her teammates, or even Kurenai.

Pausing in the street, Hinata realized she hadn't spoken with any of them since Neji's funeral. The thought made her chest ache. Neji would be disappointed in her for not looking after their friends.

Glancing at her hands, Hinata noted how beaten up they were. She'd really been pushing herself and not paying attention to her friends. She'd been so focused on bettering herself and staying true to Neji's memory, that she'd been neglecting her friends and everyone around her.

Hanabi's face came to mind and Hinata felt a pang of guilt. She hadn't been helping her sister as much either. Or really even paying attention to her clan. She'd been shirking a lot of her duties, and only focusing on getting stronger. It felt like the only way to make sure that she didn't lose another friend or family member. Hinata never wanted to go through what happened with Neji ever again.

Losing a friend, teammate, or family member was a part of being a shinobi, but that didn't mean she couldn't do everything within her power to prevent it. That's why she had been pushing herself so hard, and how she was able to reach ANBU level in such a short amount of time after the war. Becoming more powerful so she can protect her people is all that she can think about most days.

A part of protecting those people though, is talking to them and seeing them. Being there for them and letting them be there for her, and she hadn't really done that.

When Kakashi had returned her to active duty, she'd gone straight from being an open wound that stayed away from everyone they loved, to working full time. She still hadn't really even addressed the breakdown she'd had. Hinata had just moved forward and kept on going. Carrying all of her baggage with her and not letting a piece of it down.

Hinata hadn't even talked to Naruto beyond the trial for Sasuke because she was too ashamed. Ashamed of her feelings, of not being enough to save Neji, of the small part of her that wanted to blame someone other than herself, and of the fact that a part of her didn't want to deal with her confession to Naruto at all. She'd been flat out avoiding him while doing the bare minimum to help with Sasuke.

Guilt washed over her in waves.

She wasn't just letting Neji down right now because of her behavior, she was letting everyone she knew down.

Lost in her thoughts and guilt, Hinata didn't notice the chaos that was heading straight her way.

"Stop touching me, idiot!"

"I have to hold onto your arm to make sure you're going the right way! I'm trying to help!"

"I know where my fucking district is, you dumbass." Sasuke hissed.

Naruto gasped in abject horror. "I can't believe you said that to me." Naruto murmured, somewhat hurt. "But you're wrong, because the village has been rebuilt since that last time you've been here. Everything's a little different, the roads certainly are at least."

When Sasuke didn't immediately object, Naruto took his arm again, trying to guide him in the correct direction.

"I said, don't touch me, idiot!" Sasuke snapped, jerking away from Naruto and glaring at him as if his touch burned him.

"I'm just trying to help y—"

"Oof."

"Ugh."

Hinata hit the ground hard. Her head throbbed and was spinning. Maybe she should have gone home first thing instead, or at least gone straight to get food. She normally would have been paying attention, but she was beyond tired, and was distracted by her melancholy line of thought.

Hinata heard someone yell along with a ringing in her ear.

"Hinata-chan, are you ok?"

That voice sobered Hinata up real quick. Somewhat alarmed, Hinata's head popped up, searching for the source of Naruto's voice. She'd been avoiding him for a while now, and it was just her luck that this would be how she would see him again.

"N-naruto?" Hinata asked, beyond confused.

"Get up, idiot."

Hinata glanced to her left and saw Sasuke, face to face with her and half laying on her. Glancing to her right, Hinata saw Naruto half laying on her and Sasuke too. The three of them had fallen and gotten so intertwined that it was hard to tell who was at fault, just that Hinata was pinned by both of them.

Needless to say, her face heated up and flushed red to the point that it was nearly beyond recognition. "Uh, um, c-could you please—" Hinata tried to ask them to get off of her but the words wouldn't come, and she could see her vision blurring around the edges. She was definitely about to pass out and she was beyond mortified. She hadn't passed out in years. This predicament though, along with everything else, it was the perfect mess.

And just like that she was out like a light.

* * *

"Dammit, Naruto!" Sasuke scolded, causing a scene as he struggled to pick himself up. Naruto was supposed to take him directly to his house, but Naruto had wanted to show him the village first. Which, in all honesty, had pissed Sasuke off. He didn't want to see any part of this village. He didn't even want to be here, but Naruto wanted to act like he was a tourist and this was some sort of fun experience for Sasuke.

Well it wasn't, and now the Hyuuga girl was passed out between them.

So much for a quiet first day back in the village.

"Look at what you did." Sasuke snapped at Naruto, arms waving in frustration. He didn't want anything to do with anyone, and this was definitely the opposite of that. There were also a ton of villagers witnessing this too, which definitely did not help with the whole village being afraid of him thing. Not that he cared what they thought, but he had a feeling that the village's perception of him made a difference in how long he was sealed.

Maybe he should have allowed Sakura to come along, she probably would have kept Naruto a little more in check or would have prevented this entirely.

Sasuke thought about it a little more and realized Sakura being present would probably have made things worse.

"Get up, Naruto." Sasuke hissed.

Looking rightfully sheepish, Naruto slowly got to his feet and scratched the back of his head. He hadn't meant to cause such a scene, but things like this just seemed to happen around him, no matter what he did.

"I didn't see her. I really didn't mean to run into her." Naruto rubbed his head, trying to figure out how this happened.

"I really don't car Naruto, just help me get her up." Sasuke struggled to his feet and rolled his eyes at Naruto's antics. It didn't really matter that they ran into the Hyuuga. The bigger issue was that she had passed out. Now they had to figure out what to do with her.

Sasuke glanced between Naruto and Hinata, his eyes lingering on the Hyuuga for a beat too long. Her long hair was splayed out on the ground around her, hands folded on her chest, and face somewhat serene. She had a light dusting of blush across her face, lips slightly parted, and lashes brushing her cheeks. Hyuuga Hinata looked like a princess.

For some reason, Sasuke found it alarming. He didn't remember her looking like this when he kidnapped her or any of the last times he saw her.

"What's wrong with her?" Sasuke deadpanned. He didn't know how to express some emotions. He was good with emotions he understood, like anger, rage, indifference, and depression. Everything else didn't really make sense to him and made him feel uncomfortable. He was never sure how we supposed to react to things, especially around females. They always seemed to take everything he did or said the wrong way. It made interactions difficult and limited.

Naruto chuckled. "Hinata faints sometimes, or at least she used to. She hasn't for a long time, so I'm surprised it happened today." Naruto raised an eyebrow, genuinely confused. "I actually can't remember the last time she passed out."

"I didn't ask for a medical history. I just asked what's wrong with her."

Naruto shrugged, not sure how to respond. "Maybe it's because it's hot out today?"

Sasuke resisted the urge to slap Naruto, and settled for rolling his eyes. He didn't need to add more time to his probation just because Naruto irritated him more than words could express most days.

"Well get up so she can breathe." Sasuke sighed. He did not feel comfortable with this one bit.

Naruto careful extracted himself like he was standing on ice that was about to crack. The blonde looked absolutely terrified, like one misstep would kill them all.

Once Naruto was standing, Sasuke struggled to his feet. He was still sore from not moving for the past couple days, and the sealing. Tsunade had mentioned that he'd likely be sore for the rest of the week. Maybe the salve that the Hyuuga gave him would help.

Sasuke glanced at the Hyuuga's prone figure. Maybe he could get her to make him another salve for being sore. She'd owe him after this. He couldn't just leave her laying there, especially with so many bystanders, but he could make her repay him.

"Pick her up."

"Excuse me?" Naruto blundered.

"You heard me. I can't carry her, not with my chakra as it is. You've got to."

Naruto glanced around the marketplace looking rather alarmed. "I—uh—I… I don't feel comfortable with that."

"What the hell do you—Ugh!" Sasuke let out a frustrated grunt. They really needed to get moving if they didn't want the crowd size to grow any larger. It didn't really look like he had any other choice.

"Fine." Sasuke huffed. "You pick her up, get her on my back, and I'll carry her."

Naruto's bewildered expression almost made Sasuke laugh. Maybe because he didn't expect it, but most likely because the blonde looked absolutely ridiculous. "I guess that's ok." Naruto murmured, hoisting the Hyuuga girl up by her armpits as if she were a child.

Sasuke raised a slight eyebrow at that. Naruto was acting like he was afraid to even touch the girl. Sasuke had been under the impression that they were friends, but perhaps he was mistaken.

Naruto was always willing and ready to do anything for a fellow shinobi, and they had grown up with Hinata. It made sense that before he had been willing to do whatever it took to protect or save a comrade. Yet, here he was acting like being around the passed out Hyuuga was the scariest thing he'd ever done in his life.

Crouching down, Sasuke considered the possibilities for a moment and shook his head. It didn't matter to him who these people were to each other. They barely mattered to him, so there was no reason for him to care.

Once Naruto set the Hyuuga girl on Sasuke's back, Sasuke slowly stood bacl up. Careful to maintain his balance. He didn't need the girl to fall off of him and injure herself further. That would definitely end up somehow being his fault.

"Alright, lead the way, idiot." Sasuke sighed. Resigning himself to the fact that he was going to be carrying the person who had helped seal his chakra and eyes on his back for the next half hour or so. At least he didn't have to be overly considerate. He just needed to be nice enough that he could get what he wanted from her.

With that thought in mind, Sasuke began the long trek to his family's old district with a Hyuuga on his back.

* * *

He tried to keep the images of how they had been slaughtered from his mind. Sasuke wasn't sure if he hoped the Uchiha District would be unrecognizable, or exactly as he had last seen it. Neither option sounded like what he wanted. Never going back there felt like a better option, but that wasn't a choice he had anymore.

Worst case scenario, he would just level the place with Tsukuyomi.

Oh wait. That wasn't an option he had anymore either.

Sasuke let out a frustrated grunt.

"Are you ok? Do you want me to carry her?" Naruto fretted, bouncing around trying to make sure that Hinata was ok.

"I'm fine, idiot. What's with the change of attitude? You acted like you were afraid to touch her just 10 minutes ago." Sasuke quipped. He didn't know why, but for some reason Naruto's behavior had really irked him. It was out of character for Naruto to behave that way, and Sasuke truly didn't know what to make of it. And Sasuke liked understanding things and people. He liked being able to predict how they would react to things or how they thought. It made him feel in control and more powerful than he actually was without his kekkei genkai available to him.

Naruto hesitated, looking rather sullen. "Hinata-chan hasn't spoken to me directly since the war…and I have been warned not to interact with her, or I will end up on quite a few people's bad sides."

Sasuke glanced at Naruto and adjusted the Hyuuga girl's weight on his back. She was surprisingly light, but she kept slipping down his back so that she ended up breathing on his neck, which didn't particularly bother him, just made him feel weird. This wasn't the first time he had carried the Hyuuga, but this was the first time he did it while being her comrade.

Last time he had been kidnapping her.

"Did she say anything to you about that?" Sasuke winced, realizing the weird feeling he felt was the Hyuuga's breath actually tickling him. That was rather irritating. Plus when he moved her she slid too far forward so that he could now feel her chest bump the back of his head every time she breathed. He had not anticipated that.

"…no."

"Then who told you that?"

"Kiba, Shino, Granny Tsunade, and some people from her clan to name a few." Naruto looked downright miserable. "I think she might blame me for Neji's death."

"Neji?" Sasuke raised an inquisitive eyebrow. He vaguely remembered Neji to be the Hyuuga prodigy. He didn't know him very well, and he hadn't made an effort to. They guy had somewhat creeped him out when he was younger, but mostly because he reminded him way too much of Itachi.

"Yeah, Neji was her cousin, and he died in the Fourth Shinobi War."

"Thanks. I gathered that much." Sasuke thought for a moment. Did he really care? Did he actually want information about this? He could probably use it in his favor with the Hyuuga at some point, but beyond that he didn't really care. It seemed to bother Naruto a bit, but shinobi dying was a part of the job. It was a part of their life, and they should be used to it by now. Neji knew that too.

It was unlikely that Hinata blamed Naruto, but saying anything about it wouldn't change that until one or the other said something. Sasuke sighed. At least this was a distraction from his problems.

"You could ask her if it's bothering you that much."

Naruto snorted and shook his head. "That's not happening."

Sasuke's motivation to give a shit quickly dwindled down to nothing as they reached the gate to his clan's district. He had no advice for Naruto, and he really didn't care either way anyway. Talking to Naruto at all had just been a way to distract himself. He didn't actually care about the idiot or his feelings.

Or at least that's what Sasuke told himself. Even though there was a very small part of him that knew it wasn't, he would never admit it. Naruto was the closest thing he had left to a brother.

Caring about him was scary, because that gave him something to lose.

Not caring about him meant Sasuke had no one.

A pang of loneliness flashed through Sasuke like lightning. Maybe Tsunade had been right. He really didn't have any people anymore. They were all dead.

* * *

 _Author's Note: Thank you for reading, and don't forget to review!_


	6. PART ONE: Chapter 6

_Author's Note:_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

* * *

PART ONE

Chapter Six: Bittersweet

* * *

The Uchiha district was more barren than he had anticipated. It looked like it had been leveled, and then never tended to. There was still portions of buildings standing, but a majority of what was left was simply debris. Sasuke didn't see a single building that was left standing.

"What the hell happened?"

"Pein happened." Naruto muttered, glancing at the Hyuuga on Sasuke's back.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. Noting that it was odd that Naruto looked to the Hyuuga when mentioning the dead Akatsuki member. "I heard he leveled the village, I didn't realize how literal that was." Sasuke snorted. He was mildly irritated that no one had bothered to clean up the Uchiha district or at least move the debris, but he should have expected as much from the leaf village. Uchiha didn't matter to the village unless they were being used as a weapon.

"So am I expected to live in the remaining rubble or what?" Sasuke looked around the empty district, trying not to think of how it had been before he left, or before they had all died.

"Of course not!" Naruto yelled, slightly offended. "Sakura-chan took it upon herself to clear an area for you, and create a new head house for your clan." Naruto smiled. It was not a comfortable smile, it was one of those where someone feels obligated to look happy about something in order not to bother someone with their feelings.

Sasuke ignored it.

"Hn."

It wasn't Sasuke's problem that Sakura repeatedly decided to bend over backwards for him. He didn't ask for her help, and he made sure to never give her the illusion that they had some sort of future together. Sasuke intentionally made sure that he never led her on. Sakura's consistent refusal to read the room when it came to him was not his worry.

He couldn't be more clear with her, aside from marrying someone else.

A little voice in the back of his head snidely told him that wouldn't even deter the pink haired kunoichi, and he had to agree. Sakura gave the impression that she would never let go of this delusion that he had romantic feelings for her.

A part of Sasuke felt bad for Naruto. Apparently Naruto had finally put together that Sakura wasn't going to let go either. Which had to mean that it was painfully obvious to everyone if Naruto figured it out.

Sasuke followed Naruto through the former streets of the Uchiha district.

Every few 100 meters Sasuke would see a piece of rubble that reminded him of a time when his clan was still alive. It caused a pang in his chest to ring out through his body. The more he saw the more hollow he felt.

The shops of his childhood, where he bought treats for his mother. The symbol for the Uchiha's Police Force that his brother had explained to him. The front of his Aunt and Uncle's home. Portions of a wall that used to proudly and prominently show the Uchiha fan. The paint was now faded and bleached from the sun, hammering home that no one had cared enough about this area to preserve any part of it.

Maybe it was for the best that it had been destroyed. So that anyone who lived here in the future wouldn't have to explain the remnants of a dead clan. Pein had washed the land clean of the history that had been here. At least the blood of his clan had been taken with it.

* * *

It was immediately apparent that Sakura had over done it. Sasuke didn't know how or why Sakura was given permission to do this, but whoever let her had not been thinking clearly. Kakashi was most likely to blame for it, hell, the man had probably encouraged it.

Sasuke sighed. It was clear that Sakura had never entered the Uchiha district when it was in its prime, or she never would have built such a ridiculously ostentatious home for the clan head.

Naruto, sensing Sasuke's discomfort, tried to appease him. "She wasn't sure what it looked like, so she based it off the Hyuuga's."

"That explains a lot." Sasuke's clan had been powerful ninja with a strong dojutsu. However, they were not as showy as the Hyuuga, especially when it came to wealth. They preferred to show power through actual ninja prowess, not with their homes. At least, he hadn't remembered his home being like this at all.

"I told her it would be too much, but Yamamoto helped, so it didn't cost a lot to build. It just looks…" Naruto trailed off, not wanting to insult his teammate.

"Ridiculous. It looks ridiculous. Did she forget that I'm alone?" Sasuke snapped.

"I think she…built for the future." Naruto shrugged at the weak explanation.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. So him teammates remembered that he wanted to restore his clan, so what. He wasn't so sure about that anymore, especially if the village was just going to use his children anyway. Plus, he'd have to have a lot of children in order to rebuild his clan, and he didn't even have a girlfriend.

None of that was changing any time soon.

"Come on," Naruto gestured for Sasuke to follow him inside the sprawling house.

At least she had gone with a traditional appearance. That was the only thing that was remotely similar to his home. There was a deck that wrapped around the home and framed the courtyard.. There were large windows and sliding doors on that made the home appear welcoming. Definitely not what Sasuke wanted.

Leaving the courtyard for the house, Sasuke pushed open double doors to enter his new home.

The first thing he noticed was the dark wood floors and simple neutral colored walls. At least Sakura had decided to not over do it here. Walking straight through the foyer and past what appeared to be a dining room, Sasuke unceremoniously dropped the Hyuuga on a large white couch that was low to the ground. He had expected that to wake the Hyuuga girl up, but she was still out cold.

Naruto tried to chastise him for his treatment of the Hyuuga, but Sasuke ignored him.

Sasuke quickly left the living room and headed for the kitchen. He hadn't trusted the hospital, so he had barely eaten while he was stuck there. Now, he could finally eat. Sasuke immediately began a search for food that was dismal at best.

Naruto must have assisted with stocking his cupboards, because his options were just various kinds of instant ramen. He'd have to figure out how to get food to his house if he wanted to eat something worthwhile in the next couple days.

Accepting that he had no other choice, Sasuke quickly made himself instant ramen while Naruto watched from a distance. From what he could tell, Naruto was unsure of how to behave in Sasuke's new home, or even how to talk to Sasuke.

Luckily, Sasuke didn't care, so it didn't bother him.

"Is there something you need?" Sasuke asked through bites of ramen.

"Well, what are you going to do with Hinata?" Naruto glanced in the general direction of the living room where they had left the unconscious Hyuuga.

"I'm going to leave her where she is, because I'm on house arrest." Sasuke deadpanned. "Or do you think the ANBU who think they're hiding right now will take her home?"

Naruto considered this for a moment and shook his head. "Her father would be pissed if she came home like this." Sasuke noted the serious look on Naruto's face. _Just what is the Hyuuga to him?_ Sasuke scrutinized, eyes narrowing in suspicion. Naruto hadn't appeared to care that much when Sasuke had originally kidnapped the Hyuuga. Well, Naruto had reacted, which is what Sasuke had needed, but now Sasuke suspected that he had underestimated how important the Hyuuga was to Naruto.

Sasuke felt the urge to vomit.

It was probably because of the ramen.

"Do you want to take her home with you?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow at Naruto.

Naruto fervently shook his head "no."

Sasuke wanted to keep the Hyuuga so he could ask her questions about his seals, get her to give him more salve, and possibly guilt her into getting him food. She had reacted pretty unexpectedly when he hadn't taken the news of his seals well. He'd find a way around these seals one way or another.

Sasuke just needed to find out how much he could manipulate the Hyuuga to help him.

* * *

Hinata woke to the sound of bickering. Something she was somewhat familiar with, thanks to Kiba being her teammate. He was strong willed and argumentative, so bickering came with the territory. Usually he bickered with Shino, but that was always uneventful, because Shino would typically not respond at all, or only give quick short responses. That usually made Kiba even more irritated.

This sounded a lot like that, which was why Hinata was incredibly confused that she opened her eyes to see a plush living room with a large white couch, a square mahogany coffee table, and an off-white rug that appeared to be some sort of animals fur.

Thinking of all of the houses she had been in and all of the friends she had, Hinata could not think of one that had a living room that she knew looked like this. It reminded her a little bit of Kiba, but imagined that the white fur rug would have made Akamaru uncomfortable, so it was doubtful to be his home. Plus, she had spent far too much time at Kiba's house to not know what his living room looked like.

Well, she hadn't seen him in a while, it was possible…

Hinata shook her head.

This place didn't smell like Kiba, it smelt like fresh cut wood and fresh air, far too earthy for Kiba. His house, no matter how often he cleaned it, still had a mild wet dog smell to it. Something that Kiba was used to, but visitors were usually slightly put off by. Hinata had tried on multiple occasions to gift him with candles or incense that would help with the smell, but he refused. Even the extremely mild scents.

It didn't Hinata that much, she just knew that it bothered Kiba ever so slightly. She also suspected that it was a part of why Kiba didn't have a girlfriend yet. He felt uncomfortable bringing women home.

"Well, then what do you suggest?"

Hinata heard someone snap in the other room. Whoever it was, they were not happy.

"I'm not sure... She could stay here, with you?"

Hinata knew that voice. That could be none other than Uzumaki Naruto. It felt like there was suddenly a large stone weighing her stomach down. She hadn't had an actual conversation with Naruto since the war, and she still didn't quite feel comfortable talking to him. Not that she really had anything to say to him, it was clear where he stood with her. They were friends, and nothing more. Hinata accepted that, even though it made her heart ache. That was something she could learn to deal with. She wasn't there yet though, she was very far from it still. Especially since seeing Naruto always made a little voice in the back of her head start talking about how she wasn't good enough for him and how he would always love Sakura, she should have known that.

It made her feel queasy.

Looking around, Hinata decided that she needed to get the hell out of wherever she was and soon. At the very least, she needed out before she had to talk to Naruto.

Hinata quietly sat up and slid off the couch. Her head still throbbed, but she could definitely get out of here without making a sound or alerting anyone to her presence. If Naruto wasn't here, she would have stuck around to thank whoever had taken care of her. She vaguely remembered passing out, but didn't remember the circumstances. Normally, she woke up where she fainted, but this person had decided to move her, and all she remembered was falling while walking around the market.

Hyuuga pride sprout up in her and made her feel incredibly rude for leaving, but her pride wouldn't let her stay either. That was saying something too. Pride never usually bothered her, but she couldn't stand to hear from Naruto what she already suspected. Not yet at least.

Inching into the foyer, Hinata crept along the dark wooden floor towards what she assumed to be the front entrance. She idly noted how bare and uncomfortable her surroundings were, but didn't think on it too much. It felt like the Hyuuga compound, far too sterile and void of life. Not comforting area, that was for sure.

"Oh, Hinata-chan! You're up!"

Hinata cursed herself. She should have moved more quickly.

Turning around slowly, Hinata tried not to make eye contact with the blonde. "Oh h-hi, Naruto." She couldn't help it though, and immediately searched his face for some sort of emotion.

He looked disappointed.

That cut through Hinata like a knife.

"How are you feeling?" Naruto began walking over to her, his movements awkward, like he'd rather be doing anything other than moving towards her.

"I'm fine, thank you." Hinata got out without a pause. It sounded odd, but she couldn't help it. She wanted to scream, or run, or pass out again. She wanted to be anywhere but here. Looking at Naruto's sunny face and bright blue eyes made her think of the future she didn't have with him and filled her stomach with lead. As long as her eyes didn't start to prickle and threaten tears, she would be alright.

Naruto stepped closer, a serious look overcoming his face. "You know, I've been meaning to talk to you, Hinata-chan. Do you mind if—"

* * *

Sasuke watched. Naruto move in on the Hyuuga, searching for answers to the questions he had about Hinata's apparent avoidance of him. That didn't really matter to Sasuke, but it was interesting to watch the Hyuuga girl shrink away from Naruto like she was afraid that he would burn her. Or maybe she felt like she was too close to the sun. Naruto did give off that bright shining aurora that was more often than not overwhelming, like an eclipse. Sasuke had some bitter feelings about that. Naruto just made people light up and he was strong and people loved him for it, but Sasuke…

People feared Sasuke.

So it was odd that this Hyuuga girl seemed to fear Naruto on some level too. That actually made Sasuke feel better, to see Naruto rejected in such a way.

"Leave her alone, idiot." Sasuke mercifully interrupted. The Hyuuga girl looked about ready to pass out again, and not from being red faced this time. She was ghost white and looked absolutely terrified.

"Shut up, Sasuke." Naruto said half-heartedly.

Sasuke noted that Naruto gave up rather quickly. He had expected more of a comeback than that, but something about being in front of the Hyuuga dampened Naruto. Made him look sad. Apparently he was seriously worried about Hinata blaming him for Neji's death.

For a moment he thought about bringing it up for Naruto so he could end his misery. Then he remembered he could use that to get what he wanted. With a rift between the two of them, it would be easier to get the Hyuuga to help him to get to Naruto. It also meant he could manipulate Naruto with information about the Hyuuga. Sasuke felt a small smile tug at his lips.

This could be interesting.

"Are you heading out already? It looked like you hit your head when you fell. I can walk you home if y—"

"Oi, Hyuuga. I need more of the salve you gave me before." Sasuke said, interrupting Naruto and Hinata's conversation to the point of moving in between them. He couldn't have Hinata leaving before he at least got what he brought her here for.

"Oh, um," Hinata fidgeted, searching her pouches quickly for some of her salve. She remembered using a good amount of salve while on her mission, and she had only brought the one with her. Normally she didn't need a lot of salve on solo missions, so she hadn't thought to have more on her person.

"I'm sorry, Uchiha-san, I don't have any with me…" Hinata felt her face flush with heat. She had helped seal the man's eyes and life. The least she could do was provide him some salve. "I can bring some by later today or tomorrow if that would be alright."

Hinata looked up, trying to gage the Uchiha's reaction. They were not friends, but she felt like she owed him something. Not only because of sealing him, but also for how he had protected her from Naruto when he had owed her nothing. It would have made more sense if he had never helped her, but he had, and she had repaid him with helping to take his freedom. If she ever got the chance, she would try to explain why she had agreed to assist Tsunade in spite of her personal beliefs.

Maybe she could even befriend Sasuke, once he forgave her. He was an important person to Naruto and Sakura, so he was trustworthy. Plus, he would need friends now more than ever.

Sasuke glanced at the time, it was already mid-afternoon, and he wanted to familiarize himself with his new home. Without people there to witness every emotion that could possibly flicker across his face. Typically he buried his emotions, but when it came to his family he had a more difficult time of it.

"Tomorrow would be fine, thank you."

"I will come by first thing tomorrow then." Hinata nodded at Sasuke and turned around, but not before catching the look on Naruto's face. "Thank you for your concern, Naruto, but I am fine." Hinata forced a quick smile in his direction before pushing the double doors open. As much as a part of her still loved Naruto, seeing him now still took her breath away like a swift kick to the chest.

Immediately fleeing the house, Hinata ran towards her home. She sensed the ANBU that were nearby, but felt like it would be inappropriate to wave at them. They would also be forced to report that she had interacted with the Uchiha, which would probably come up as an issue in the future. Or at least, she would be warned to remain neutral when she would end up taking her turn watching the Uchiha.

 _Can I remain neutral?_ Hinata pushed the thought aside. She would always protect her village. Owing Sasuke though… She never went back on her word. That was her ninja way .She would do what she needed to do to protect her most important people.

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Thank you for reading and for all your support! It really motivates me._

 _Don't forget to REVIEW!_


	7. Part One: Chapter 7

_Author's Note:_

 _I hope you liked this chapter! Sorry for the delay in updating. I ended up editing this chapter a lot because I was worried about it getting too long. I kept removing and adding to it, but I like how it ended up looking, so it's worth it._

 _Anyway, enjoy! Don't forget to REVIEW! It really motivates me and lets me know how I'm doing._

 _Thank you!_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

* * *

PART ONE

Chapter Seven: Debts Owed

* * *

Hinata really didn't want to go home. She still didn't know what her father had been so upset with her about after defending the Uchiha. Since then she had been purposefully avoiding him by taking missions or staying out of the mansion as much as possible by training for hours on end, then only returning to sleep or shower.

Hyuuga Hiashi was a bright man, and nothing got by him. Which was likely why there was a note waiting for her on her bed.

 _My Daughter,_

 _See me as soon as you arrive home, we have much that we must still discuss. If I do not see you by dinner, I will send Ko to find you._

 _Hiashi._

Hinata was tempted to rip the note up and pretend she never saw it. She was certain that her father had not actually set the note on her bed. The last time she remembered him having been in her room was when her mother was still alive and the two of them would come together to put her to bed.

No, Hiashi definitely had not entered her room. Most likely it had been a servant who had brought the note up to her room and set it squarely on her stark white bed so that she would see it even if she came in through the window.

For some reason, that made her a little sad.

Hinata pushed the feeling down. It was not of consequence. There was plenty she needed to get done, and this was simply a waste of her time.

* * *

Hinata took her time before going to see her father. She needed to change and shower. She knew if she didn't she wouldn't hear the end of it from the elders. Every move she made was watched by her family, from sun up to sun down. Everything was observed. Everything was critiqued. Her worth was constantly being evaluated so they could determine what they would do with her.

Since the elders decided that Hinata would not be the clan head, Hianta has felt a weight linger on her shoulders that pressed down on her whenever she was around them. Even though she no longer had the responsibility of heir, they still watched her every move, just waiting for her to mess up.

Her most recent faux paux came in the form of one Uchiha Sasuke. Hinata had gone against her clan's wishes and assisted in saving Sasuke from execution. In reality, the trial had been less than two weeks ago, but it felt as if months had already passed by. She'd been too busy with her new induction as an ANBU and avoiding a majority of the people in her life, she hadn't actually been punished yet for ignoring her clan's position in regards to Sasuke.

Nimble fingers quickly braided her hair so that it came down to rest on her chest. Neji would not have approved of wearing her hair in such a way, but it was getting so long and difficult to manage, that after washing it, braiding her inky dark hair was the only way to contain it. She honestly preferred keeping it in a loose pony tail, like how Neji and a majority of her clan kept it, but lately it just didn't feel the same.

Keeping her hair out of her way kept her focused.

Hinata jostled her bangs do they could air dry, and gave herself one last look in the mirror. She had hoped to find some sort of resolve there, knowing that this meeting with her father was likely in regards to the Uchiha incident and how she had been avoiding her punishment. Hinata found no added courage from looking herself in the eye, it just reminded her how much of an outsider she was in her own clan.

No matter how hard she tried or how much she loved them, she would never be accepted by them. That was too hard for her to accept.

* * *

Finding her father didn't usually prove to be a difficult task. Despite their home being rather large, he typically remained in only a handful of rooms for more than five minutes. Asking branch members usually gave her the answers she needed, they always knew anything and everything that was going on in the house. But today she just couldn't find him.

He wasn't in his study, he wasn't in the dining room, he wasn't in his room, he wasn't in the council chambers, and every branch member she ran into simply shrugged when she asked for his location.

Hiashi had been the one looking for her, and now she was stuck searching for him. The switch did not escape Hinata's notice. Hiashi had most likely done this on purpose to show her how frustrating it could be to search for someone.

Hinata sighed, half tempted to activate her Byakugan and just end the search.

"He's in the dojo."

Hinata flinched ever so slightly at her sister's harsh tone. Hiashi wasn't the only Hyuuga she had been avoiding lately.

Hanabi came up the hallway to stand behind Hinata, but so that she was still staring straight ahead at her path. "Where have you been, sister? I rarely see you at home, let alone in the village. What has gotten into you?"

Hinata forced a smile even though she knew that Hanabi could not see her face. "I've been busy on missions and with training, little sister. I'm sorry, I haven't been as present these past couple days as I could have been."

Hanabi snorted.

"You haven't been around since Neji died. If you're going to make excuses, at least be honest." Hanabi snapped, instantly regretting it from the way Hinata's shoulders tensed.

"I've had a lot going on Hanabi." Hinata sniffed, pushing aside her emotions for the moment to reason with her sister. "I have recently been promoted, and getting things going has been pretty in depth."

Hanabi shook her head, not believing what Hinata was saying, but recognizing that she wasn't going to get anything else out of her. "Fine. Father is waiting for you in the dojo. We just finished up training." Hanabi hesitated for a moment, not wanting to leave her just yet. "I miss him too, you know."

When Hinata didn't respond, Hanabi sighed.

"You're my sister and I'm here for you, but I can't be here for you if you won't let me." Hanabi gently set a hand on Hinata's shoulder, not wanting to startle her. "Let me help you."

Hinata turned a beaming smile to Hanabi. "Thank you, but I'm fine."

Hinata felt more than saw Hanabi's will deflate. She felt bad for being the cause, but she didn't want to deal with this right now, or possibly ever. The guilt she felt about Neji was far too great to share with her little sister.

Frustrated, Hanabi walked away without another word.

* * *

"Father? You asked for me?" Hinata knelt on the wooden floor just outside the dojo's sliding door. Hands balled into fists and pressing on her knees, Hinata hoped that her father wouldn't answer so she could go back to her room and sleep.

"Come in, Hinata." Hiashi called from inside to dojo.

Grimacing, Hianta stood and slid the door open. She entered with a short bow. "What is it, Father?" She wanted to get straight to the point so she didn't have to waste time worrying about what this was about.

"Ah," Hiashi waved his arm, gesturing for Hinata to join him inside the dojo. "Please sit, Hinata."

Hinata glanced around the room, noting that nobody else was present. If she was about to be disciplined elders would be present as well, so that wasn't the reason for her being here. Hinata scrunched her face slightly in confusion. She wasn't sure why else her father would be asking for her presence besides addressing her previous indiscretion.

Gathering herself to sit in front of her father, Hinata waited.

"Hinata, I asked you here, because the elders are pressuring me to make a choice for you that I do not feel comfortable making." Hiashi paused. Hinata could tell that he was thinking deeply about whatever he wanted to speak with her about. This unsettled her. Hyuuga Hiashi was a man who was always certain of everything he did. Anything that made him uncertain was definitely something to be worried about.

"Since you have refused to fight Hanabi again for the title of heiress, you will not be the clan head. This means that you have two options before you." Hiashi hesitated, causing Hinata to glance up at him. Meeting his eyes had been difficult as a child, but now, it was as easy as breathing. She no longer feared her father the way she had when she was a child.

"My daughter, you must marry or be sealed by you next birthday."

Hinata felt all the air leave her lungs.

"I have done what I can for you these past couple months as you have grieved your cousin Neji, but I cannot hold them back any longer. You saving the Uchiha has forced my hand." Hiashi's voice shook, Hinata wasn't sure if it was sadness or rage. She had no idea her father felt this deeply about protecting her. She had never…

"Father…"

Hiashi held up a hand, silencing Hinata so he could continue.

"I cannot chose this for you, you must decide." Hiashi stared into Hinata's eyes, conveying the importance of her decision. Knowing full well that the caged bird seal, when placed on an adult had the potential to kill them, and with her heart having been weakened in the Chunin exams.

It would be unlikely that she would survive.

That was a large part of why she was so hesitant to place a variation of the seal onto Uchiha Sasuke. The potential for death far outweighed the chance to live. With Sasuke, apparently, Tsunade had felt comfortable with that gamble. Or maybe she had felt confident in that particular variation of the seal. It hardly mattered now though.

Her choices were to marry or die.

Hinata felt pin pricks on her eyes.

"The elders are already preparing a list of possible suitors, within and outside the village. It will be provided to you by next week."

"Thank you, Father." Hinata rushed the words as she stood to leave. She needed to leave this dojo. She needed to get to her room. She needed to go cry, so she could accept her fate and move forward.

"Hinata," Hiashi halted her as she was passing through the dojo's door. "I want you to marry well and be happy. I did not want things to turn out this way for you."

Hinata nodded, knowing this wasn't her father's fault, but her own.

* * *

Sleep did not come to Hinata that night.

When the sun came up in the morning, she was still awake. She knew that the maids would be in her room within an hour to clean. It would be in her best interest if she wasn't there when they came in. Everyone in the Hyuuga clan would already know of the choice she would have to make, and she did not want to see their pitying glances or hear their barely hidden whispers.

If they didn't know, they would soon. The stains on her white pillow sheets from her tears would at least tip them off that something was amiss. Or maybe it wouldn't. She slept fitfully most nights anyway, so they probably think nothing of it.

Pity was the worst.

It meant people felt bad for you, but not enough to actually do anything to help you. Hinata couldn't stand it. There was a difference between pity and empathy or sympathy. Pity was too often related to gossip. In her experience, most people just wanted to witness things and say that they felt bad, but not actually do anything about it.

That was a big part of why she loved Naruto.

Why she **had** loved Naruto.

Hinata glanced around her room and made sure that the room was at least somewhat organized. She didn't like to leave a great deal of work for the maids. They were good about letting her handle a majority of her own cleaning, but some things she just didn't have the time to complete lately. It wasn't ideal, but the room wasn't horrible. Just not how she preferred it.

Gathering her things, and making sure to grab Sasuke's promised salve, Hinata headed down to the kitchen to make herself a quick breakfast. If she had had the time, she would have made herself some cinnamon rolls, but she didn't. So she'd settle for eggs and veggies mixed with rice.

Hinata made her food and ate quickly. The entire time, she made sure not to make a mess. The cooks let her make her own food because she was good about not making extra work for them when she did. If she wanted to keep living her life that way, then she needed to make sure she didn't make any kind of mess.

Gathering her dishes to be cleaned, Hinata realized that the Uchiha didn't have any food at home. She hesitated for a moment, but gave in to the urge to make food for him.

She'd make food for Kiba or Shino if she was going to see them right now. Making food for him seemed fitting. It was only polite. Plus, it helped eased her guilt just a little bit.

Hinata moved quickly and hoped that Sasuke liked vegetables.

* * *

Watching the sun as it reached higher into the sky, Hinata headed towards the Uchiha district. She wanted to get this over with as quickly and efficiently as possible. The sooner she could leave, the sooner she could get on with her training.

Hinata knocked curtly on Sasuke's front door.

When she had been here yesterday, she hadn't really had the time to take stock of the place. It certainly was large. Sakura had really gone overboard. She had good intentions, and wanted to help Sasuke. It definitely looked like Sakura had never entered the Uchiha district when it as thriving, or she would not have made the house look like this.

Sakura had had good intentions, but the bigger issue was that it was a giant home for a single man. A man who was alone and very much lonely. This would only emphasize the absence that he had in his life.

Hinata waited and knocked again. She was certain that she had told the Uchiha that she would stop by his house early in the morning. Perhaps he had forgotten already.

Not wanting to derail her day any more than she already had, Hinata set the salve down on the Uchiha's front porch. She'd keep the food that she had made for him, there was no telling how long it would take him to figure out that he had something waiting at his front door, and letting the food go to waste was pointless.

Hinata nodded her head while crouching down. This was for the best, she didn't actually want to see the Uchiha. She did need to look at his seals, but she could come back again later for that.

"What are you doing?"

Hinata resisted the urge to jump out of her skin.

Slowly she stood with the salve back in hand. "I brought the salve that you asked for." Hinata looked up into Sasuke's face. He looked tired, but not as bad as he had when she was sealing him. His eyes had darkness under his eyes, but they didn't look sunken in anymore and no longer were bloodshot, which was a marginal improvement.

It was odd to see him in such a mundane way. She had obviously woken him, he was still rubbing sleep from his face.

Sasuke quirked an eyebrow, noticing the Hyuuga taking a long look at him.

"Is that it?"

His clothes also appeared to fit him better. Hinata doubted that he had already gained back weight. Sakura must have gotten him clothes as well.

"I brought you some food too, as a thank you." Hinata shrugged, not feeling as confident now that she was here giving him food. It felt too much like confessing when she didn't have those types of feelings for him.

He was attractive, that was obvious, she had never been one of his fangirls though. Naruto had always been the light that guided her. Maybe it was more blinding than she admitted, because she remembered finding Sasuke quite the opposite of attractive when she was younger.

"A thank you for what?" Sasuke snorted.

"Oh, um, for saving me back then." Hinata nodded, holding the bento box out to him.

"Hn." Sasuke looked at it speculatively, as if investigating it for poison.

Shrugging, Sasuke took it out of her grasp and turned away, heading back into his house. "If you wanted to thank me, you could have gotten me my sword back. This'll have to do for now."

A smile crept onto Hianta's lips. She hadn't expected that kind of reaction, but it was a welcome surprise. If he was already back to having an attitude about his situation, then he was well enough to get back to training.

The smile faltered when she noticed the large Uchiha fan emblazoned on the back of his shirt. Sakura had not gathered new clothes for him. No one would make the fan, and Sakura, although wonderful at healing, was terrible at sewing. No. Sasuke was wearing clothes from his clansmen from before they were murdered.

That…was rather morbid. Hinata wasn't sure how to feel about it, and decided not to judge. She'd learned in the past couple months that grief made people do strange things. She couldn't imagine losing her whole family. Sasuke's oddness made a lot more sense the more she learned about him.

Quietly following the Uchiha into his home, salve in hand, Hinata noticed more this time around than she had when she first entered. It was apparent that Sakura had taken the Hyuuga as an example for how the head of a clan should life. It was like a scaled down version of her home. Sasuke would likely make it his own in time.

Hinata followed Sasuke into the kitchen. She hadn't had a chance to see it the other day. It was nice and open, with white cupboards and stainless fixtures. Sakura had done a wonderful job here, but it did not seem like Sasuke at all. The only thing that seemed to remotely suit the Uchiha was the dark flooring that was throughout the home.

Suddenly, Sasuke stopped at the counter and turned around.

"What are you doing?" Sasuke sneered. Confused as to why the Hyuuga was following him. He hadn't asked her into his home, and she didn't seem to be like his teammates and think that they were friends.

Hinata raised an eyebrow at the Uchiha and raised the hand she was holding the salve in. "What I'm here for." When that didn't seem to register in the Uchiha's mind, Hinata clarified. "To give you the salve and check your seals."

Sasuke glared. "If you think you're putting that on me—"

"Oh no!" Hinata said alarmed. Setting the salve down on the counter she continued, "I only need to use my Byakugan to look at your seals. I should see them regularly as well, to check for infection, but Tsunade didn't sound concerned about that at all."

Sasuke got out some chopsticks and began eating the bento Hinata had given him. "Well get on with it then."

Somewhat irritated by that comment, Hinata focused her chakra and activated her bloodline limit. Sasuke's opinions or feelings he had toward her didn't matter. She just needed to do her job and repay the debt she owed him.

* * *

Sasuke watched as the Hyuuga closed her lavender eyes and activate her bloodline limit. He remembered thinking that the Hyuugas' eyes were disturbing as a child, but hers somehow seemed comforting in spite of the bulging veins around them. Squinting at her he decided it was the color. The stark white of the majority of the Hyuugas was what was off putting about their eyes. Her slight discoloration made her seem kinder.

"Have you been trying to activate your bloodline?"

Sasuke scoffed at Hinata, but didn't answer. He couldn't trust her and didn't know what kind of trouble he would be in for trying to activate his eyes. After hours of sitting alone he tried to activate his eyes, hoping that something would come of it.

Sasuke's non-answer was apparently enough.

"Don't do that," Hinata shook her head, stepping closer to the Uchiha. "You'll only hurt your eyes by doing that." Hianta reached out to touch Sasuke's face, causing him to flinch away.

"What are you doing?" Sasuke alarmed, swatted at Hinata's hand.

"I need to unblock the chakra around your eyes, or it will cause a build-up, which will cause an uncomfortable pressure behind your eyes—if it hasn't already." Hinata deadpanned.

Sasuke didn't remember her looking so serious the last time she had done this, but he hadn't really seen her then either. He also didn't remember her being so small, but that made sense, considering he had been able to hold her over his head when Naruto had come at him. At the time, it just hadn't been something he was paying attention to. Now, it just made her hard to take seriously. How on earth was this woman a shinobi?

Humming, Hinata gently touched his face, her cool chakra mixing with his own.

"That should take care of it and prevent any possible pain." Hinata nodded to herself, satisfied with her work.

It felt like she had dispersed whatever buildup of chakra had formed from his attempts to activate his eyes. There was still a slight pressure, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it was before.

Sasuke watched, bewildered as the woman moved comfortably around him and in his home. She wasn't afraid of him and didn't appear to be infatuated with him either, which was appealing. Perhaps the Hyuuga woman wasn't as weak as she gave the impression of being.

"This salve is the same as the one I gave you before, you can use it to help with the irritation that the seals are causing still." Hinata murmured, patting her hands on her legs and wiping them.

Sasuke looked at her for a moment, trying to decide what he wanted to do. His choices were to either sit around while ANBU watched him, or try to get Hinata to help him. He wasn't sure what he could use to motivate her. He had thought that using Naruto would help, but watching her now, he wasn't so sure.

"What are you going to do now?" Sasuke asked, noticing that Hinata was getting ready to leave.

This seemed to surprise Hinata, because she immediately stopped what she was doing and looked at Sasuke as if he had grown a second head. "I'm going to go train for a while." Hinata studied Sasuke for a moment, trying to figure out what his motives were. "Why do you as, Uchiha-san?"

"What are you going to practice?" Sasuke asked, ignoring Hinata's question.

Hinata quirked an eyebrow at Sasuke. "I was planning to work on my taijutsu, and possibly so elemental based jutsus." Hinata stared at Sasuke for a moment, noting that he looked somewhat uncomfortable. "Why do you ask?"

Sasuke's face pinched. He didn't want to be bored and sitting around thinking about his dead family or about how he had no freedom, despite no longer being in a cell. If he sat in this house much longer, he'd probably burn the whole thing down for the hell of it. It was just a fancy new cage that was made by his former teammates, it held no meaning for him.

The other problem was that he wasn't sure how to even ask something like this. He hadn't had a whole lot of pleasant interactions with people his age while under Orochimaru. It had actually been a lot of just fighting people until they died, or outright murdering people. That didn't help develop social skills. Before that he had been on Team 7, and that obviously didn't do much to develop his social skills, considering who his comrades were.

Hinata, noticing Sasuke's inner turmoil decided to take a shot in the dark.

"You're allowed to train, Uchiha-san. In fact, I'd encourage you to do so. You need to become more familiar with your new limitations so that you don't hurt yourself or others." Hinata smiled gently, trying to encourage Sasuke.

"I was under the impression that I wasn't allowed to." Sasuke muttered.

"Oh, if that's what you're worried about, there's no need to be. You have enough room to set up your own training grounds outside, if you'd like." Hinata noticed that this didn't seem to appease Sasuke. "You probably have a dojo in the house as well, if you are literally confined to the house. At least, if Sakura really did base it off my house, then there should be…"

Hinata trailed off. Uncertain of how to help the last Uchiha. He seemed bored and extremely lonely, but she didn't feel like she knew him well enough to know how to help.

"We can spar if you'd like. I'm sure the ANBU would be comfortable with allowing that much."

"I wouldn't be so sure, they won't even let me go get food." Sasuke scoffed, glancing at the bento box of food Hinata had brought him which was already empty.

Hinata, slightly taken aback, realized that that was in fact a problem presented by Sasuke's house arrest. Kakashi probably assumed that Sakura or Naruto would help, but the two are so busy that it must have slipped through the cracks. She'd have to tell the next shift of ANBU to bring food to stock Sasuke's house. Kakashi could set something up later so that it wasn't a problem in the future, but having the ANBU take care of it now was an easy fix.

"I'll make sure you have food to make dinner, Uchiha-san. Anything else?"

Sasuke hesitated for a moment. "You know, I never did have the chance to test myself against a Hyuuga. I think now would be a good chance. Plus," Sasuke moved closer to Hinata, upper lip curling, "Now that you're ANBU you could use some practice with an actual challenge."

Hinata let a smile and scoff slip out at that.

"Don't underestimate me just because you were able to grab me during battle while I was wounded." Hinata sized Sasuke up. "I don't think you realize how much of a handicap you have right now. You can't use a majority of your arsenal."

Sasuke smirked. "That'll still be enough for me to beat you, Hyuuga. Call it payback for helping seal me." The smile didn't stretch to his eyes.

Hinata bulked at that, but let it pass. Sasuke was allowed to be bitter about it.

"Fine. Let's go."

* * *

Hyuuga Hiashi had not slept well after giving his daughter the ultimatum of marriage or the caged bird seal. It didn't sit well with him. The options weren't ideal for his daughter either, he knew that, but he'd been forced into a corner. Still, Hiashi would do what he could for his daughter, and he would ensure that she would have the best future possible. Which was why he had stayed up all night writing letters to be sent out by noon.

At this point, it was up in the air about what would happen. The elders weren't pushing as hard as he was for her to marry someone. They certainly were fine with Hinata simply being sealed. That made since to them, especially since Hinata had decided to join the ANBU, and hadn't even asked permission first.

The elders had originally had the goal of marrying her off by the time she was 25 years-old, but they didn't really care what happened to Hinata. Her timeline for marriage changed anyway when Uchiha Sasuke came back to their village and was allowed to live.

Being head of a clan was difficult. Being head of the Hyuuga was impossible.

In his youth, he had made many mistakes, especially around the death of his wife. When her health started to fail her and it was uncertain the child she was pregnant with would survive, he had made many mistakes.

Creating a contract with the Uchiha to marry off his first born was one of them.

At the time, he had believed that his second child would be a male, and befriending the Uchiha in a time of uncertainty had seemed like the right choice. He had been wrong, but that didn't matter, he had already agreed to marry Hinata off to the heir of the Uchiha clan. If he could go back and change it, he would. If he could remove the document from existence, he would. Unfortunately, the Uchiha had insisted on making three separate copies of the document.

One for the Uchiha, for their archives, which was most likely gone.

One for the Hyuuga, which Hiashi had hidden in his study after the fall of the Uchiha.

And one for the village, to keep record of the dealings between different clans. Which was the main reason why he was pushing for Hinata to marry outside of the village. The records would not be checked in the leaf village if she married someone from another village. It only mattered in whatever village the man was from, not the woman. Nobody would check to see that Hinata was betrothed to the Uchiha if she married someone from another hidden village.

Hiashi loved his daughters. He wasn't always the best at showing it, but he did. It was his job to protect them, and recently, he had been failing at that more and more.

Hiashi finished writing the last letter for the kages outside his village. He would hear from them who could possibly marry Hinata, and be worthy of her too. He would do what he could for his daughter.

At the very least, he would make sure that she was married to someone else before the Uchiha figured out he already had a wife.

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Don't forget to REVIEW!_


	8. Author's Note

**Author's Note:**

Hello All,

I'm sorry I haven't updated recently. I won't be updating for this week. I'm sorry for the delay, but I'm currently in Law School, and finals are the next two weeks. Once those are over, I will be updating. I have the next couple chapters already started and/or mapped out, but I don't feel like they are ready to be published.

I need to focus on studying right now, but I will be publishing Chapter 8 by August 20th. Promise.

Also, I have some polls up for future fanfics if you would like to weigh in!

Thank you for understanding!

~CoffeeLover13


	9. PART ONE: Chapter 8

_Author's Note:_

 _Sorry for the delay everyone! I rewrote this chapter so many times. I wanted to make sure it felt right and like the feelings were genuine._

 _Well, here's hoping I accomplished that. Without further ado._

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

* * *

PART ONE

Chapter Eight: Arrangements

* * *

Hinata followed Sasuke back through his house to the front door. Stepping back into the courtyard, Hinata started to second guess herself. This was starting to feel like a bad idea. What if she ended up further injuring the Uchiha? That wouldn't help anyone. It would most likely cause her more problems.

"Uchiha-san—" Hinata began, but stopped. Noticing the way Sasuke seemed lighter. He needed to spar just as badly as she did. This similarity surprised her, but the last Uchiha needed to center himself somehow. Seeing as training did that for her, it only made sense that it likely did the same for him. Sasuke was still human after all.

"What, Hyuuga?" Sasuke glanced over his shoulder.

"Nothing, sorry."

Sasuke snorted. "Don't apologize. It's annoying."

Hinata bristled at that. He didn't know her well enough to say something like that to her. _He isn't wrong though…_ Hinata decided to ignore the comment. Sasuke was an irritable man, he was bound to say rude things.

Following Sasuke into a field felt odd.

It reminded her somewhat of their recent encounter, but she didn't feel uncomfortable. All things considered, she should feel like her skin was crawling, but she felt relatively at ease. She was somewhat nervous about how the ANBU watching Sasuke would react. That didn't really affect how she felt about Sasuke though. That more so affected her work life. As much as she wanted to help Sasuke and take some of her guilt away, she didn't need to get in trouble with the ANBU when she had only just joined.

Assessing the area, Hinata noted the location of the three ANBU that were currently keeping tabs on Sasuke. One was about 40 yards away in the forest that surrounded and encroached upon the Uchiha land. The other two were about a half mile away from Sasuke's house—positioned closer to the village. This was likely in an effort to surround the Uchiha, but it wasn't very affective. If Sasuke even had half of his abilities he'd be able to get away in a matter of seconds with the ANBU positioned as they were.

 _Maybe they're keeping their distance because I'm here?_ Hinata shrugged at the thought. Whatever the reason. It seemed odd to her that they were positioned the way they were.

 _Or maybe it's so they can keep him away from the villagers._ Hinata grimaced. Right now, with a majority of his arsenal sealed, Sasuke needed protection from the villagers, not the other way around. Especially since most of the villagers have made it apparent that they want him dead.

"Are you coming or what, Hyuuga?" Sasuke snapped.

Hinata noticed that Sasuke actually seemed eager to spar with her. That likely had more to do with the chance to spar than anything else. He almost seemed excited, which Hinata certainly did not expect.

Sasuke hadn't yet had a chance to walk around outside besides his walk to his new home from the hospital, let alone spar. This was his first real taste of freedom he'd had in a while. Especially since sparring with Hinata was his choice, unlike walking with Naruto.

Reaching what felt like the middle of the field, Sasuke suddenly turned around to face Hinata.

"Any ground rules you'd like to establish before we start, Hyuuga?"

Hinata tipped her head to the side. "Well, to be fair, no dojutsu."

Sasuke snorted.

"And since you have no weapons, and limited chakra…" Hinata glanced at Sasuke and noted his tense figure. "We should stick to just taijutsu for today."

"You can use whatever you want, Hyuuga." Sasuke smirked. "You'll need it."

* * *

Sasuke realized he made a mistake around the time Hinata hit him in the gut for the second time in a matter of seconds. He knew she wouldn't be easy to fight, but he didn't expect it to be this difficult. Not being able to use his eyes or a majority of his jutsus was making it extremely difficult to counter attack.

It also didn't help that his chakra being so low was affecting his physical abilities. He didn't anticipate that to be a problem, but it was. They'd been fighting for about ten minutes and he already felt out of breath.

This was really causing him to reevaluate all of his fighting tactics. Obviously he was relying on his chakra and jutsu far more than he realized if he was struggling this greatly.

"Do you need a break, Uchiha-san?" Hinata asked, her voice even. She clearly wasn't having to work hard to combat him. She hadn't even bothered to remove her jacket, and she wasn't sweating or even winded from the spar.

Sasuke was impressed. He wasn't at his full capabilities. Not even close. But he still hadn't expected her to be _completely_ unbothered by him. He'd have to actually full out spar with her at some point. That would definitely be interesting. There would have to be limitations to be fair, but he had the feeling that she would prove to be a decent opponent even then.

The Hyuuga was no Naruto, but having another person to spar didn't hurt. Especially given Naruto's busy schedule and how aggravating he could be to be around.

"Call me Sasuke." The last Uchiha quipped, sliding to a stop after receiving the Hyuuga's latest blow.

"It's really alright if you need a break. Your chakra is extremely limited." Hinata spun and kicked Sasuke in the chest, sending him sliding back once more.

Sasuke grunted.

"I'll admit, I overestimated how much strength I currently have, but I can still spar against you just fine, Hyuuga." Sasuke countered, jabbing at Hinata's flank and sending her on the defense. Making her guard herself with her forearms.

Hinata dodged and leaped backwards until there was some distance between her and Sasuke.

"If that's how you feel…Sasuke." Hinata charged.

The abrupt change in tactic surprised Sasuke. Hinata didn't seem like the type to be so direct with her attack, but her upbringing probably had more to do with that than anything else. The Hyuuga fighting style, as far as Sasuke had heard, was pretty direct and aggressive. He hadn't really seen it in action, but from what he heard, it didn't suit her personality at all.

Her training with ANBU probably had some influence with her fighting style now too.

Sasuke feinted right and leapt to the left, struggling to get out of Hinata's way. The woman was persistent and every move was within a hair's breadth of being a direct hit.

Knowing he couldn't keep this up for much longer, Sasuke took a direct hit and anchored her to her spot. Sasuke struck out his right leg, trying to sweep her legs out from under her, but Hinata blocked him.

Sasuke struck out with his left arm while holding her in place with his right, and she blocked him again. Getting frustrated, Sasuke moved to knee Hinata in the chest, but she was too quick for him.

Using her free hand, Hinata latched onto Sasuke's right shoulder. Acting quickly, she spun around so her back was against Sasuke's chest. Using this momentum and her hips, Hinata flung Sasuke down on his back.

Sasuke's eyes widened, surprised that the petite Hyuuga girl could body slam someone double her weight.

Hinata smirked. Knowing she had taken Sasuke off guard. He'd underestimated her—

Eyes widening, Hinata realized that Sasuke had not yet released his hold on her, and she was quickly falling with him.

At this, Sasuke smirked. Sure, he'd underestimated the Hyuuga, but that didn't mean he wasn't always prepared. Using the momentum that Hinata had created Sasuke tossed Hinata over his head. Forcing her to land on her back with her arms locked in his.

Sasuke chuckled, knowing he'd won—

Hinata pitched her feet over her head, flinging herself back toward Sasuke.

She landed with her knees on either side of Sasuke's chest and hands pinning Sasuke's arms above his head. To say that the last Uchiha was shocked, would be an understatement. At this point, Hinata was breathing deeply and the two locked eyes.

Realizing the compromising position they were in with Sasuke's smirk, Hinata's face went beet red. Stumbling to her feet, Hinata moved away as quickly as she could while apologizing.

Sasuke, seeing the opening for what it was, latched onto the Hyuuga's ankle and caused her to trip. In a second he was on top of her, pinning her down and switching their rolls.

Hinata's face went tomato red with embarrassment.

It had been a while since she sparred with a partner. Even longer since she had sparred against a partner that she was not related to. Sasuke being as attractive as he was definitely made things worse. She didn't have feelings for him, but it was hard to deny how handsome he was.

With dark mysterious eyes, inky black hair that was difficult to tame, and all that lean muscle—it was hard to disagree with the assessment that the last Uchiha was still extremely attractive.

Naruto's face flashed before her eyes, and all the color drained from Hinata's face.

* * *

"I win, Hyuuga."

Falling to the side, Sasuke rolled away from Hinata and into the grass. For a moment he laid there on his back, taking stock of all the odd thoughts and feelings that had flickered through him during that sparring match.

The Hyuuga was by far a more interesting and attractive opponent than Naruto. Half way through the match, it became apparent exactly _why_ the Hyuuga was so adamant to wear her multiple layers and jackets at all times.

She was very petite, but was definitely a curvy woman under all that drab and boring training wear. Sasuke wasn't sure why that thought came to the forefront of his mind, but it did.

The Hyuuga was full of surprises.

It was a shame that she felt the need to cover herself so completely, but her modesty was admirable. Plus, it was probably safer for her to be modest while living the life of a shinobi. Men weren't usually like Sasuke. Most were motivated by other needs than to seek strength, and that could be very dangerous for someone like the petite woman next to him.

That line of thinking made him incredibly uncomfortable and mildly concerned.

Shaking the thought off, Sasuke quickly rose to his feet. He turned to the Hyuuga, who was still laying on the ground, and offered his hand to help her up.

"That was a decent spar Hyuuga." Sasuke admitted when she accepted his help up. "You could do better though."

Hinata grimaced. The backhanded compliment all too familiar to her. "Thanks, Uchih—Sasuke. We should do it again sometime." Hinata automatically responded, not sure if she meant it. Sparring with another partner had been fun, but she wasn't so sure that sparring with Sasuke was a good idea.

"Do what again sometime?"

Hinata's blood ran cold. She should have sensed him coming over, but she had been focused on the spar.

Hinata slowly turned around to see Naruto walking up to them.

"The Hyuuga let me spar with her," Sasuke began, glancing between Hinata and Naruto, noting the immediate tension that settled into Hinata. "She stopped by to give me more of that salve because of all the seals that cover my body now—I think that's supposed to make us even somehow?" Sasuke added, noticing that that seemed to make Hinata more uncomfortable.

"I'm truly sorry, Uchi—Sasuke." Hinata's head was down and hands gathered in front of her, looking the picture of remorse. "I didn't have any choice—"

"Now that, I disagree with, but—"

"Stop it, Sasuke." Naruto snapped, moving closer so he was between Hinata and Sasuke. "If Hinata says she didn't have a choice, then she didn't."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Sure."

"I'm truly sorry, Sasuke. If I had let Tsunade do it alone, then the chance of mortality would have been incredibly high. I wish…" Hinata hesitated. "I never wanted to help create a seal like that. I am so sorry. I just didn't want you to die because of my feelings."

Tears began to brim in Hinata's eyes, and Sasuke felt…odd.

"Hn." Sasuke shrugged. "It would have happened with or without your help." Sasuke shoved his hands into his pockets, not sure what to do with his hands all of a sudden. "So I guess it's not completely your fault—"

Hinata perked up at that, relief spreading through her.

"—but you still owe me." Sasuke smirked, knowing he had her where he wanted her. "How about since I can't leave the house by myself, we spar every morning. Plus, I need to get used to my new chakra level." Sasuke watched Hinata hesitate and weigh the options. It probably didn't help that Naruto was standing right there watching this happen and being surprisingly quiet. Sasuke knew from Naruto's expression that he was alarmed at the idea of Sasuke and Hinata training together, but knew he had no reason to intervene.

Naruto didn't even have a way to.

"You would benefit from this too, Hyuuga," Sasuke added as an afterthought. "You need a partner to train with, and I can teach you what I have learned."

Hinata's eyes lit up and Sasuke knew he got her.

"How are you going to teach her anything if you can't do anything?" Naruto raised an eyebrow and narrowed his eyes.

Sasuke shrugged. "I can somewhat keep up with her taijutsu, and I can teach her more as I get my chakra back over time."

Naruto couldn't argue with that.

"So, Hyuuga," Sasuke moved so he was directly in front of Hinata, "what do you say?"

Hinata thought about it for a moment. Unsure of whether this was a good idea. She did feel like she owed him, and she could use a partner that she hasn't practiced with often. It would keep her on her toes, and she could hopefully learn some new jutsu. Plus, she had actually enjoyed sparring with the last Uchiha. More than she would like to admit.

He didn't treat her like she was a fragile thing, and she appreciated that.

"I'll think about it." Hinata decided.

Sasuke snorted. "Fine."

* * *

Hinata had left Sasuke in the field with Naruto shortly after. She had given him a once over with her Byakugan to make sure his chakra was in balance before leaving, but she left immediately after.

She hadn't felt comfortable staying when it was apparent that Naruto had come to see Sasuke. She didn't want to be in the way, and she still felt off around Naruto.

After letting the ANBU know that Sasuke needed food brought to his house, Hinata headed back to the village. Now that she didn't need to train for the morning, she could get some errands done, like she had meant to the day before.

Walking through the newly built streets, Hinata stopped into Tenten's weapon shop first. She needed to get some tools sharpened before her next mission, and Tenten was the only one she trusted with her equipment. The only down side was… well there was a few downsides to seeing Tenten.

The guilt was a big one.

A huge one really.

Then there was the fact that every time she went in Tenten tried to get her into another weapon, which was hard for Hinata to say no to, but she didn't use too many weapons. Pretty much just the standard kunai, shuriken, and needles.

Having recently joined ANBU—the ink of her tattoo was still healing—she was considering purchasing herself a new weapon to celebrate.

A majority of ANBU had a sword of some kind, or a specialized weapon. Hinata was teetering on telling Tenten that she'd been promoted and was thinking of commissioning her for a weapon. She felt some guilt about this though. Ever since Neji had died…

Well a lot of things had been consistent since Neji died, but one thing in particular was Hinata's training. All she did was train, eat, sleep, and go on missions. She'd been so focused because of the loss of Neji, and feeling like she needed to prove that she was worthy of his sacrifice. Hinata had a burning feeling in her chest whenever she thought about Neji, and just how she wanted to make him proud of her. She wanted to be true to his memory, so she was dedicating herself to their family and their village.

Now that she thought about it, she wasn't sure when she last saw Tenten, or a majority of her friends for that matter.

Guilt pooled in her stomach and licked her the sides of her ribs like acid.

She needed to make a better effort to be social. Neji would want her to keep tabs on their friends, especially his teammates, to make sure that they were all doing ok.

Hinata shook her head, chastising herself. Here she was, letting him down once again. She needed to be better than herself. She needed to make up for Neji's loss. It was her fault, and it was the very least she could do.

Stepping into Tenten's shop, Hinata's was hit with a wave of strong burning incense. Tenten had always been a fan of incense, but recently she'd been on quite a renewed kick with it, or at least she had been the last time Hinata saw her. The smell wasn't unpleasant, it was just…really strong and unique? That was probably the nicest way to say it.

Hinata enjoyed her fair share of incense too, so she didn't blame Tenten, she just preferred more mellow scents.

Hinata scrunched and wiggled her nose, trying to get the smell out before she saw Tenten. Hinata knew as soon as she saw her, she wouldn't be able to do that again any time soon.

Hinata wasn't always so sensitive to smell, but after having a teammate like Kiba for so long, it only made sense that she'd be more aware of it than the average person.

Hyuuga eyes searching the rather poorly lit shop—not all of the new developments had full access to power yet—Hinata's eyes landed on Tenten. Her double buns poking out from behind the counter in the back of the shop.

The entire shop was made of natural wood from Konoha, which gave the shop an earthy scent. The walls were covered in weapons of every kind, only limited by the imagination. The more standard civilian and shinobi weapons were closest to the door, with the more extravagant items closer to the back where Tenten spent most of her days.

Hinata remembered when Tenten first let her know that she no longer had the desire to be a full-time shinobi. She'd be surprised at first, but the more she thought about it, the more it made sense. With Neji gone, Tenten's team would never be the same. On top of that, Hinata had always suspected that Tenten had had romantic feelings for Neji. After his death, Hinata suspected that Tenten didn't have the drive to be a shinobi any longer.

Tenten still assisted with missions when she was called upon, but it wasn't her primary job anymore.

It still made Hinata a little sad, but it made sense, and Tenten seemed happier now at least. Hinata wasn't sure if she'd always be a full-time shinobi either. If she ever got married, she'd have kids, and then…

Hinata stopped that train of thought. Blonde haired and blue eyed children were not in her future, no matter how badly she wished for it.

Clearing her throat, Hinata alerted Tenten of her presence. She had remained underneath the counter, busying herself with something, since Hinata walked in. A little voice in the back of her head said it was because Tenten didn't want to see her or have anything to do with her. Logically, Hinata knew that wasn't the truth. Tenten loved her and she was one of her best friends. But, there was always that niggling doubt in the back of her mind.

"Hinata!" Tenten shouted, jumping up from behind the counter, face lightly flushed in embarrassment. "I'm sorry! I didn't hear you come in!"

Hinata giggled.

"It's alright Tenten, you're busy with work," Hinata hesitated, taking in Tenten's mildly disheveled state. "I can come back later—"

"Nonsense!" Tenten shouted, hopping over the counter to get to Hinata. "This is the first I've seen of you in weeks!" Tenten grinned, hugging Hinata fiercely. "I can't tell you how happy I am to see you." Tenten sighed.

Guilt made Hinata's stomach squirm. "I'm so sorry Tenten, I've been—"

"No no no. You don't have to apologize to me for anything Hinata." Tenten smiled, stepping back from Hinata but still holding onto her, like she was afraid a strong breeze would take her away.

Hinata nodded her head, not sure what else to do.

"Come here, let's go to the back." Tenten flashed a conspiratorial smile and flipped her "Open" sign to "Closed". Grabbing Hinata by the wrist, Tenten pulled her into the back room office of her store.

"So, how have you been?" Tenten asked, sitting down on a pillow in front of a small table that had paperwork, coffee, and kunai scattered across it.

Hinata sat next to Tenten on another pillow. "I've been ok. I actually came in today to see how you're doing and sharpen my equipment for my next mission." Hinata hesitantly smiled.

"Oh! Perfect! Here, hand them over." Tenten reached out for Hinata's weapons immediately. Hinata quickly removed her weapons pouches. Now that she was ANBU, she carried around three separate pouches of weapon, and they were all very much full. Her most recent mission wasn't an ANBU mission, but she was trying to get used to moving around with that much weight regularly, and in places that she wasn't completely familiar with carrying extra weight.

Handing over the weapons, Hinata realized that Tenten would likely notice how much extra weaponry Hinata was carrying around now. She needed to mention it quickly and briefly. Besides, telling Tenten made it feel like she was telling Neji in a way.

"U-uh, Tenten. I actually wanted to tell you that—"

"You're ANBU now, aren't you?"

"How did you—"

"You have three pouches, you've been training non-stop, and you have fresh bandages on your arm," Tenten pointed to each clue, then smirked, "so I guessed."

Hinata glanced at her right arm. She had bandages wrapping around her upper arm to part of her shoulder. She thought she had made it look natural, but apparently she hadn't. She supposed her sleeveless outfit probably didn't help. She'd taken to wearing a kimono styled purple top with black shorts when it was warm enough. It had been incredibly hot out for the last couple days, so she had dressed for comfort rather than worrying about covering the mark. She'd have to be more creative in the future.

Maybe if she covered both upper arms it would look less noticeable and more like a fashion choice.

"I meant to tell you sooner, Tenten. I'm sorry I've taken so long. It's been hard to…" Hinata trailed off. She felt somewhat guilty talking about her feeling about the loss of Neji around Tenten. It was one thing when Tenten brought him up, but when Hinata brought him up. She just felt like she was shoving fingeres into a half healed wound every time she brought him up.

"I know. I think about Neji a lot too. It's hard not to, especially with something like this. This is a big moment for you, Hinata, and I am so proud of you. Neji would be so proud too." Tenten smiled, her golden brown eyes lighting up the whole time.

"Thank you, Tenten." Hinata said solemnly. "You don't know how badly I needed to hear that."

Tenten just nodded, taking Hinata's hand in hers' and gave it a squeeze.

They sat in silence for a beat before Tenten was moving about her office again, looking for a wet stone to sharpen Hinata's weapons with. "Now, tell me everything else."

Hinata sighed. "Where do I begin?" Hinata laughed, but it sounded empty.

* * *

Talking to Tenten had lifted Hinata's spirits. Everything seemed brighter and lighter, and Hinata was feeling relieved. The idea of telling Tenten about her promotion had been giving her mild anxiety. Hinata hadn't been sure how Tenten would take it, especially since Hinata was fairly certain that Neji had been extremely close to becoming ANBU.

He probably would have been if there hadn't been a war to interrupt their lives.

Hell, he probably had already been in the process when the war started.

Still, after talking to Tenten, she felt less tired than when she had gone into the Tenten's store. Plus, all of her tools were sharp as they could possibly be.

She'd even talked to Tenten about getting a new weapon.

Tenten had squealed with excitement and told her she knew "just the thing she needed." Hinata felt somewhat skeptical of that, but nonetheless humored Tenten. It was the least she could do. It wouldn't hurt her to become proficient in more weapons anyway. In battle, one never knew what could happen, and she needed to be able to fight with whatever was available to her.

A chill went up Hinata's spine.

Sometimes thinking about fighting or weapons made her uncomfortable. Hinata had been almost a pacifist when she was young. She'd still wanted to be a shinobi though, that had never perturbed her. It just took her time to understand that it meant fighting sometimes too. She had to be ready not just to protect those that were important to her, but ready to kill for them too.

That had taken her a lot of time too.

She still struggled with that to some degree. Hinata would never hesitate, but she still had an internal struggle when it came to killing. Being in ANBU now though, she'd either get over it or get kicked out of ANBU. She wouldn't be able to have qualms about things like that.

Training with Sasuke would likely help, at least with getting her more comfortable with learning new styles and combatting new people. He also was familiar with working with a sword. She could ask him to train her in that first. That would also keep their training in taijutsu, making his inability to tap into his chakra a non-issue.

With that thought, Hinata's decision was made.

"I'm going to train with Uchiha Sasuke." Saying that allowed made Hinata feel like she'd just signed her death warrant, not just with the other females her age, but with her family and work too. "This is going to be complicated."

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Thank you for reading!_

 _Don't forget to REVIEW! (It makes me happy.)_


	10. PART ONE: Chapter 9

_Author's Note:_

 _This did not go the way I planned, but I think you all will appreciate that._

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

* * *

PART ONE

Chapter Nine: Obligations

* * *

Before Hinata knew it two weeks went by. Training with Sasuke had started out particularly rough, but the more comfortable and used to his demeanor she got, the easier it became. Sasuke, in a lot of ways, reminded her of Neji. That was comforting to an extent, but in other ways they were nothing alike.

Sasuke was aloof and stoic, but there was a quiet rage that she could feel radiating off of him at most times. It wasn't always quiet, though.

She had expected that any sort of anger from Sasuke would be alarming and somewhat terrifying to behold, but it mostly just made her sad. Only someone that was in great pain would ever behave that way.

The first time he got somewhat heated while training her, the ANBU that were always nearby immediately went into action. It had been unnecessary. Sasuke had been frustrated with his limitations, and as a result, with Hinata too. He still blamed her, and she didn't hold that against him. For the most part, he didn't treat her any differently, but when he was particularly frustrated, that grudge would come out.

Hopefully, that would lessen over time. It was already starting to get old, but she could handle that for now.

Understanding that and recognizing Sasuke's pain for what it was… she didn't feel comfortable with the fact that she recognized it, and she didn't want to look any further into it than that.

There were other problems that came with sparring with Sasuke, than dealing with his misplaced rage. The main one being that the ANBU had reported her immediately for interacting with Sasuke so frequently. Which caused her current predicament.

Kakashi had sent for her to see him. Immediately. That didn't bode well.

Hinata didn't hold any special feelings for Sasuke, he was helping her train, and she gave him something to do besides pace the inside of his home. If she was told to no longer visit, she would. Honestly, the main reason she kept going back, aside from his abilities with a sword, she felt responsible for him. In more ways than one.

If it came down to it though, her position as an ANBU was more important to her.

Reaching the Hokage's office, Hinata took a moment to stare at the door. It did seem redundant for Kakashi to talk to her about this, especially since the ANBU already had. They had questioned her as to why she was over there so frequently and checked her allegiance to the village.

Hinata made it clear that, although she thinks of Sasuke as somewhat of a friend, her important people in this village still come first. Plus, she wasn't even sure that Sasuke thought of her as some sort of friend too. Hinata got the impression that Sasuke saw her as a distraction to entertain himself with. Which didn't bother as much as she knew it should.

She was able to use him, and he was using her. That she could handle and understand.

Sighing, Hinata knocked on the door.

"Come in, Hinata-chan!" Kakashi called from inside the office.

Hinata slowly opened the door, feeling like she was about to be chastised by a fatherly figure. Kakashi was always extremely polite and kind with her, but he never sugar-coated things for her. He was also a little too open with her at times. Like he was when he told her that Neji would be disappointed with her. At the time it had seemed harsh, but looking back it was exactly the fire she needed lit inside her chest to get her going again.

"Your knock always sounds so hesitant," Kakashi muttered, flipping through one of many files of paperwork on his desk. Two stacks were on either side of him, the stacks large enough that it would have been difficult to tell which side was completed, or if any were at all. "Plus, you're my only appointment before noon today." Kakashi smirked under his mask, finishing up with the document in front of him, Kakashi set it down to give Hinata his undivided attention.

Hinata stood in front of his desk, ready for a lecture.

"So, what do you think of Sasuke's progress this month?" Kakashi asked, his tone serious. His demeanor changed so quickly, it was difficult to keep up sometimes.

"Well, Sasuke has been helpful with training me, and doesn't appear to have any ill intents toward the village," Hinata paused, unsure of what information to provide. With a nod from Kakashi, she continued, "He also has not had any incidents that I have heard of, but I can't speak for his every day since his sealing. Overall, his demeanor has improved and he doesn't appear to be a threat."

Kakashi steepled his fingers, thinking for a moment.

"Is that your honest opinion?"

Hinata furrowed her eyebrow, unsure of his meaning.

"You're not just saying that because you think it will make me or Naruto happy, right? This is your honest opinion? Not just what you think I want to hear?" Kakashi clarified.

Hinata vehemently shook her head. "No, no. That's my honest opinion." Hinata felt her face heat up at his comment.

Kakashi hummed and leaned back into his chair, considering something. "So, you trust him."

Hinata's went beet red. "I don't know that I would say I trust him, but I don't distrust him, if that makes sense."

Kakashi nodded his head in understanding. "Alright," Kakashi picked back up the document he had been looking at previously. "You can remove his lowest chakra seal. Thank you for your honesty in this, Hinata-chan."

Hinata nodded quickly and bowed, taking her cue to leave.

"Oh! And Hinata-chan—"

Hinata paused, turning back towards the Sixth Hokage on her way to the door.

"When were you planning to tell me that you are leaving the village?"

* * *

Hinata's heart stopped. She had no idea what Kakashi was talking about. "I'm sorry, I-I d-don't understand." Hinata stuttered out, caught off guard and confused by the question.

"I mean this," Kakashi gestured to the document he'd been looking at. Hinata stepped forward until she recognized her father's handwriting and read the first sentence. This was alarming, because the seal on the document was from Suna.

"I'm sorry, I… I still don't understand." Hinata shook her head, eyes wide.

"It would appear that your father has sent notice to all of the Kages that he is searching for a suitor for you. Gaara-san was kind enough to give me a heads up at the possibility of losing my best tracker." Kakashi grimaced. "I wish you had told me sooner Hinata-chan, I will have to replace you on your squad in the ANBU, and that takes time."

Kakashi's words washed over Hinata. She didn't realize that her father was being so proactive about this. She knew she should feel grateful for her father's assistance, but…

"I don't know what this is." All the blood had drained from Hinata's face, eyes searching the letter.

Kakashi glanced between Hinata and the letter from her father to the Kazekage. From the surprise written all over her face, it was evident that she was telling the truth.

"I didn't… Father let me know that I would have to marry soon, but I didn't know that… that it would be so soon." Hinata struggled to get out. "I knew that it would be a choice between being sealed or being married, but I didn't know I would have to leave the village." Hinata felt like she was in a bad dream or in a fog. Either way, it felt like this wasn't real.

Kakashi was silent for a moment, evaluating Hinata's reaction and what she had just shared with him. "I can look into this for you, Hinata-chan." Kakashi began, "You know that my power with the clans is limited, but I will do my best to do what I can for you." Kakashi promised earnestly, keeping eye contact with Hinata.

Hinata's eyes began to water. Looking away for a moment to gather herself, Hinata wasn't sure what to say to express how much she appreciated what he was offering. "Thank you, I really appreciate anything you can do."

Kakashi nodded. "Of course. I wish you had told me sooner, this makes it a little more difficult to navigate, but I'll come up with something."

Once she'd gathered herself, Hinata turned back around and bowed, knowing that their conversation was over. "Thank you." Hinata reiterated.

Kakashi nodded and moved the file to the left, having completed what he needed from it. He didn't watch Hinata leave, just listened to door quietly close behind her. Once he knew Hinata had left the room, he sagged in his chair. This was not good. He already knew that there was very little he could do for her, besides research and hope that there was something in the archives to help her.

Even that was doubtful. The best he could likely do was provide her with a little more time in the village, unless she somehow had been promised to someone else.

Still, it was worth trying.

"Shizune!" Kakashi called. The dark haired medic still helped him from time to time because he hadn't found a replacement for her. She usually spent her mornings with Kakashi and her afternoons with Tsunade. He really needed to get around to replacing her. Shizune had made it clear that this was supposed to be temporary while he got his footing, but that time had come and gone. They were going on half a year of working like this, and he still hadn't made any effort to replace her.

Shizune came into his office, carrying a stack files in her arms. "Yes?" Shizune queried, setting the files on his desk.

"Can you bring me everything we have on the Hyuuga clan and all clan law?" Kakashi smiled. He would at least try for Hinata, she deserved that much after everything she had been through.

* * *

Hinata left Hokage tower feeling like a weight had been lifted. Kakashi would do what he could to help her, and the fact that someone was trying to help her outside of her clan was more than she could hope for at this point.

Glancing up, Hinata realized she was incredibly late to see Sasuke today for their training session. She had been so busy worrying about what Kakashi had to say to her, that she hadn't even thought about the fact that she would be late to see Sasuke this morning. It was already almost noon. They were typically finished with training by this time.

 _Well, he losses a seal today. I think he'll decide that that is more than worth the wait._ Hinata thought to herself, smiling. _Maybe I could even…_

Walking through the market, Hinata realized that this is something for Sasuke that a friend should celebrate. He's moving forward in his punishment, any milestone of it is worth celebrating. Any sort of positive spin that can be put on this, is a good idea.

 _I'll make him lunch!_ Hinata thought, excited at the prospect. From what she had seen at his house, there were certain things that he went through quickly, like onigiri, tomatoes, and salmon. Other foods went bad while he left them. From what she could tell, Sasuke was a relatively picky eater. He had enjoyed her peace offering the last time she had made him a meal, and she knew for sure he had some preferences. She could manage that.

Smiling and determined to doing something positive, Hinata went around the market and purchased what she thought would make a decent meal for Sasuke to celebrate the good news. If they were going to continue to spar together, she might as well treat him like a friend.

* * *

Sasuke was pacing the house.

The Hyuuga girl normally arrived at or around dawn. At this point, he sincerely doubted that she was going to show up today.

The last Uchiha had considered talking to the ANBU and asking if they knew whether Hinata was sent on a mission, or what the deal was. She had never been this late, and he wasn't worried, he was irritated. His time was just as valuable as hers, and for this Hyuuga to think it was fine to waste his time was infuriating.

 _I mean, it's not like she died. They would have to tell me if something like that happened. Actually, they would probably assume I did it…_ Sasuke thought ruefully. His irritation growing.

He was supposed to be getting her to be his friend so he could use her help down the line, but it wasn't worth feeling stood up. This had never happened to him before, and for it to happen when he couldn't even confront the situation made it ten times worse. It was humiliating. The only way it would be worse was if the ANBU let Naruto know—which they most likely wood, because those assholes were real comfortable with telling Naruto everything he did for the day.

Sasuke didn't care if Naruto was going to be Hokage someday, when he ate and who spoke with and whether he bathed was his business and nobody else's. This hell hole was his, and he knew that his privacy was next to nothing for the next forever until he escaped, but still.

He didn't need Naruto quizzing him every time he came over.

Talking to Naruto was irritating enough, but talking to Naruto about whether or not he was eating enough food was downright infuriating. There was only some much rage he could bottle up without it exploding.

That was the benefit of Hinata coming over. Sasuke could spar with her until he couldn't move, and she never complained. Plus, even better, she took all of his criticism in stride. It was refreshing. He did try to throw a compliment in occasionally.

Well. Sasuke tried to compliment Hinata once, and it had gone horribly, and since then he had avoided it. Hinata had looked at him bewildered, and Sasuke had decided that it was probably too weird for him to do that. Even if he knew that complimenting a woman—from what he recalled of interrogation and undercover work—was typically an effective way of getting them to like him, it was something that was so out of character for him that it definitely raised a red flag.

Next time, he needed to be more… well he wasn't sure what he needed to be more of, because he didn't typically compliment people anyway. At least he had meant it when he told Hinata he thought she was decent at close combat given her petite frame. It wasn't his fault that the compliment came off weird.

Sasuke let out a frustrated grunt. He didn't need to be thinking about this right now, because obviously Hinata was avoiding him if she still wasn't here. And obviously, she wasn't as serious about training as he had thought, which was more disappointing than he had thought it would be. A little voice in the back of his head said that it was because he enjoyed her company, but there was no way that was the case.

Uchiha Sasuke found everyone annoying, no matter who they were or how useful they proved to be. That's just a fact.

Continuing his pacing, Sasuke almost didn't hear the knock at his door.

Storming to the front door, irritation rolling off of him, Sasuke decided that he would lecture the Hyuuga for wasting his time. That is, if it actually was her. If it was Sakura he would be shutting the door immediately. Again.

He knew it wasn't Naruto because he always just walked in unannounced anyway.

"What?" Sasuke snarled when he opened the door.

Hinata stood there, smiling in spite of his noticeable irritation, with her arms full of groceries. "I brought food to make you lunch!" Hinata grinned, visibly excited.

Sasuke stood in the doorway, blocking Hinata so that she could not get passed him.

Hinata fumbled with her packages for a moment, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "Is something wrong, Uchi—Sasuke?" Hinata still struggled with being so informal with him, despite the fact that his correction had occurred two weeks ago.

When Sasuke didn't respond with anything besides continuing to stonewall Hinata from entering the house, Hinata stepped back. "I brought you groceries to make you lunch, Sasuke. Did you not hear me? Is everything alright?" Hinata looked up to Sasuke. It always surprised her to realize how much taller than her he actually was. Hinata's head only reached Sasuke's chest, but she somehow always forgot until she was close to him.

Seeing Hinata with her arms full of groceries for him made something burn in his chest, which only made Sasuke angrier.

"You're late."

Hinata's eyes lit up in understanding. "I'm sorry, I w—"

"You're late." Sasuke hissed. Irritation rolling off him like toxic fumes.

"Well, that's actually why I got the food, because—"

"I don't care, Hyuuga." Sasuke snipped. "You're late. You're obviously not as serious about this as I thought you were. Clearly, your clan was right to remove you as their heiress. I don't have time for people who waste mine. Now take your shit, and leave." Sasuke slammed the door.

For a moment, Hinata stood there stunned. Not believing what just happened. _Did he just… Did he just slam his door in my face?_ Hinata's face went red, but not in embarrassment. She was mad.

No.

Hinata was pissed.

She went through all that trouble to buy him food to make him a meal to celebrate the fact that she could remove a chakra seal, and as an apology for being late, and he did this. Here she was trying to be his friend, when the last Uchiha clearly didn't have the capacity for that.

Hinata felt something akin to rage bubble up inside of her.

"No, he doesn't get to do that."

Hinata dropped the food in her arms and opened Sasuke's front door with a bang—barging into the Uchiha's house in a similar fashion to Naruto. "You don't get to talk to me like that." Hinata snapped at Sasuke, who had turned around as soon as the door opened.

"You don't get to berate me, and snap at me, and slam a door in my face." Hinata emphasized each word by poking Sasuke in the chest. "I have a lot going on right now, and I certainly don't need this from you." Hinata fumed, poking Sasuke's chest especially hard.

"This is why I was late, you indignant ass." Hinata quipped, snatching Sasuke's arm and forcing his sleeve up. Finding the seal she needed, Hinata placed two fingers onto the line and forced chakra into it.

"I was called to the Hokage's office, which is why I was late, and told you get some chakra back." Hinata snapped, as Sasuke tensed with the invasion of another's chakra into his own.

Sasuke's own chakra felt like electricity crackling against the skin, but Hinata's invading chakra felt like fire had just scorched him. Last time she had forced chakra into him, when he had a built up of chakra around his eyes, it had felt cool, like water. This felt volatile.

Excitement flooded him.

Hinata narrowed her eyes. "I did you a _favor_ when I didn't allow Tsunade to seal you alone. Yes, I wish I hadn't done what I did, but if I had let her do it alone, you would have _died_. Just because I helped, does not mean you get to treat me like a nuisance." Hinata released Sasuke's arm as if she was disgusted by him.

Hinata turned away from him and walked back towards the door, her anger fading to hurt.

"What's got you all worked up?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow and tried to hold in a chuckle. He didn't think the Hyuuga was capable of such intense emotion, or even anger of any kind.

Hinata whirled around. Tears starting to form in her eyes.

"I'm not a leader in my clan, Sasuke!" Hinata emphatically threw her hands out in front of her. "I was cast aside years ago! And now, that they know I'm capable, I have the choice to leave and marry a stranger, or take the seal! The one that is _worse_ than yours. The one that _Neji-nii-san_ died with." Hinata took in a breath, the cathartic release of her built up emotions emptying her.

"So, no, you do not get to treat me that way." Hinata let out the breath she had been holding, deflated. "I am not a nuisance, and I am not weak." Hinata said, as if it was something she had said to herself countless times.

Shaking from expelling such strong emotions, Hinata just stood there. She had never done something like that.

Well, she had never done something like that in front of someone else. Hinata bottled up her emotions until they could come up in training. Obviously that wasn't very affective.

Realizing what she had just done and who she had done it in front of, Hinata's face drained of all color. Mild horror at her actions taking over. She should apologize, but she was far too embarrassed and hurt to say anything more.

Hinata turned around quickly, trying flee and hide her embarrassment.

"Wait."

Sasuke grabbed her wrist in mid-air. Halting her progress.

"Please, let go, Uchiha-san." Hinata requested lowly.

Sasuke felt like the air had been forced out of his chest. For some reason, her words stung more than he would have thought possible.

"I'm…" Sasuke hesitated. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that."

Hinata kept her head low, not wanting him or anyone else to see her face.

"What do you mean you have to marry or take the seal?" Sasuke felt and sounded hollow.

Hinata turned slightly, confused at Sasuke's reaction. She wasn't sure if he was concerned or what, but it took her off guard. "My father is arranging for suitors to come to the village so that I can be married. If I am unsuccessful, then I will be sealed." Hinata spoke softly.

Sasuke wanted to ask why she didn't do something else, but he knew why. Hinata was the daughter of a clan head. There were certain things that were expected of a clan head's child that only a few could understand. Even fewer understood what it was like as the child of a prestigious clan. Sasuke had been that, a lifetime ago.

So instead, he asked, "Do you have no other choice?"

Hinata shook her head.

"What about someone inside the village?" Sasuke asked, feeling his face go numb.

Hinata looked quizzically at Sasuke. Even more confused now. "My…my father is not looking inside the village, if that's what you mean." Hinata shook her head.

"If you were married to someone in the village…you could stay?"

Unsure how to answer that, Hinata shrugged Sasuke's hand off of her. "There's no one left for me." Hinata said, turning away from Sasuke and fleeing through the front door.

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Thank you for reading!_

 _Don't forget to REVIEW!_


	11. Part ONE: Chapter 10

_Author's Note:_

 _We made it to 100 reviews! I'm so happy! That was a secret goal of mine, so I'm super happy. Thank you so much for all the love and support that this story has gotten. I'm really excited to get to this part of the story. I'll leave it at that. ;)_

 _Thank you again!_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

* * *

PART ONE

Chapter Ten: Ebb and Flow

* * *

Sasuke felt like he had been kicked in the chest. Repeatedly.

"What the hell was that…"

The Hyuuga girl's display of rage and then despair had left him speechless. On some level, he knew that friends should go after a friend that just had a meltdown in front of them, but he couldn't make himself leave where he stood.

He was watching the packages of produce move in the wind when Naruto came walking through his front door with a grin on his face.

"I heard that—" Naruto slipped on what appeared to be a—now crushed—tomato. "What the hell happened?! Are you throwing perfectly good food out your front door now?" Naruto looked at Sasuke incredulously. "You know we have people literally scavenging for food in the village, right?" Naruto waved his arms in disbelief.

Sasuke turned around, ignoring Nartuo.

"Oy! Teme!" Naruto yelled, chasing after Sasuke. "It's rude to ignore your friends!"

"Get the hell out of my house, loser."

Naruto stopped abruptly, visibly hurt by Sasuke's jab. "Well, that's just mean." Quickly shaking off the insult, Naruto continued to pursue Sasuke. "So what happened? Why did you throw your food out the front door?"

Sasuke sighed. "I didn't, dobe."

Naruto snorted. "Then who did? Food doesn't just magically appear like that at your door. And I know no one else visits you."

For some reason, that bothered Sasuke. It was not Naruto's business who did and didn't visit him, and he knew that this would hurt him. "Hinata did. Hinata visited. Hinata visits me every day. Hinata and I spar every day. Hinata—"

"I think you mean Hinata-chan." Naruto said seriously, a dangerous undertone there.

"Does it bother you? That I'm so familiar with her? You know, she calls me Sasuke." Sasuke smirked, watching Naruto's eyes widen.

Brushing it off, Naruto snorted. "Good joke, Sasuke. Not very funny, but—"

"I'm not joking, Naruto." Sasuke snapped. "Hinata visits all the time, and brings me food, and spars with me, and calls me Sasuke, and stays for hours. Oh wait, and you—she doesn't even talk to _you_ anymore."

Naruto's face fell.

"You don't mean that." Naruto anguished.

"Why would I lie? What do I care?" Sasuke retorted, looking defensive. He knew what he was implying wasn't truthful, but Hinata did come over every day. She probably wouldn't going forward, but she had been for the past two weeks and more. She _did_ call him "Sasuke," most of the time. He did call her "Hinata," well he normally called her "Hyuuga," but whatever. And they did spar, and she brought him food twice now. So, he wasn't lying. Stretching the truth? Sure.

"I have no reason to lie to you, dobe."

Naruto's face crinkled up in distress, then realization dawned on him.

"So, you're saying that Hyuuga Hinata threw food at your front door." Naruto raised an eyebrow, his voice hard. "And you claim you aren't lying, so why would Hinata-chan throw food at your door?"

Sasuke didn't have a response for that.

"What did you do." Naruto hissed, moving forward until he had Sasuke against the wall. "Hinata is the kindest person I know. It would take a lot for her to do something like that." Naruto's eyes narrowed, his hands balling into fists. "Now. What did you do, Sasuke?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Nothing."

"Liar." Naruto hissed, latching onto Sasuke's shirt and shoving him into the wall. "What did you do, bastard!"

"I upset her." Sasuke said disinterestedly.

"Clearly." Naruto said curtly, shoving Sasuke into the wall again. "What did you do?" Naruto's fists clenched, wrinkling Sasuke's shirt.

Sasuke looked down at Naruto's fists. Naruto had grown since they were genin, he was definitely stronger and taller, but Sasuke was still taller. Right now he wasn't much stronger, but someday soon he would be. For now, there wasn't much he could do with Naruto threatening him, besides play it off and not care.

"I already apologized, so I fail to see how it is any of your concern." Sasuke hissed in disgust, removing Naruto's fists from his chest and shoving him back.

"Poor, Hinata-chan. She must be so—"

"Hinata can fend for herself. She isn't some fragile doll." Sasuke snapped, rounding on Naruto. "She certainly doesn't need a bumbling idiot looking after her—especially one that can't even talk to her."

Wounded by Sasuke's words, Naruto's expression turned pained. Sasuke's words were hitting close to home. Good.

"Now. Get the hell out of my house." Sasuke said, exasperated.

Naruto turned around and left. Sasuke knew that he upset him from Naruto's stilted gait, but Sasuke also knew that Naruto would be back tomorrow, because that's who Naruto was. He could take whatever Sasuke dished out and always came back for more.

As much as he hated to admit it, Sasuke knew they were like brothers. The last Uchiha didn't want to deal with the future Hokage today, and he didn't want to listen to Naruto's whining about Hinata. Sasuke didn't know why, but it got under his skin.

Plus, Naruto needed to think he had no chance with Hinata, so Hinata would be more open to Sasuke's friendship and dependency. He needed her to be vulnerable and in need of male companionship, which she definitely was.

Sasuke just had to keep Naruto from filling that roll.

Or any of the possible suitors that would apparently be coming.

"Shit."

Sasuke sighed. It was frustrating that after all of the time and effort he had put into this _friendship_ with Hinata, so that he could use her later, was going to be a waste. He had been anticipating using her to help him escape, but if she wasn't even in the village anymore there would be no point.

What could he really do about that though? He understood clan politics. It sounded like Hinata's father wanted her to leave the village—probably to broaden the Hyuuga's allies—so convincing her father that she should marry within the village would be difficult.

Who was even left? Hinata had sounded adamant that her father wanted her to marry outside of the village _because_ there was no one left _inside_ the village. Sasuke seriously doubted that. A marriage to another shinobi clan would be just as beneficial as marriage to a clan outside the village.

It didn't make sense, unless Hiashi had ulterior motives, which Sasuke highly suspected.

All he had to do was figure out what they were. Which would be difficult given his predicament of being stuck within the confines of his home. He was already a little over a month into his house arrest, less than two months remained. Sasuke just needed to find out how quickly this whole marriage thing was happening.

If it interfered with his plans, he would intervene and figure something out. If it was far enough away…

Sasuke halted in his clean-up of the discarded food, which was an alarming waste of tomatoes that hurt his heart more than he would admit.

The thought of Hinata marrying outside the village at all bothered him. That didn't make sense. Sasuke only had an interest in using her for his own gain.

Right?

* * *

Hinata stormed into her home like a hurricane. She was angry again. After shedding a few tears at Sasuke's she realized the gravity of what her father had done by sending letters to possibly suitors of her need to marry.

Storming through the hallways of the Hyuuga household, Hinata felt ire building up inside of her. Servants were pressing against the walls to get out of her way. That had never happened before, and normally Hinata would have checked herself and realized what she was doing.

Normally.

This was not a normal situation for her. Not even close. Her father took away the decision he had left for her, even if it wasn't much of a decision, it was still hers to make.

 _How could he?_

Logically, she knew that it was a good thing that he was not wasting time, and that he had already made an effort to seek out suitors so that she would have a larger group to draw from. So she'd have a better chance of finding a decent husband.

She was just surprised that no one from her village was…

Well, it made sense.

Her team was not an option. Kiba and Shino were too much like family. Shikamaru had Temari, and he felt like family too because of Kurenai. Choji was the same. Sai had Ino, and Lee had… Well Lee was Lee, and he still loved Sakura, so that was not an option.

That left Naruto, and Sasuke.

Naruto had made it clear time and time again that he did not share her feelings. The thought of telling him her situation made her feel sick, because she knew he'd help. It would be fake though, and that would be worse than never having him at all.

Sasuke.

Sasuke was Sasuke, that was…she wasn't sure how she felt about that. Hinata was pretty sure that her family would never accept that though anyway, so it was irrelevant. It wasn't even a possibility.

Hinata ignored the thought in the back of her head that said it wouldn't be that bad of an option. Yes, Sasuke did not love her. Yes, he was difficult. Yes, he was usually mean or even cruel. But, he had moments where it was clear he at least respected her. He didn't treat her like she was fragile, usually, and that could be enough.

If she couldn't have love, respect could be enough.

Her rage dying the closer she got to her father's office door, Hinata no longer had the fuel to yell at her father. It was no longer in her to fight about this.

Sighing, Hinata stood at her father's door for a moment. Did she want to talk to him? Not really. Was she still upset about him taking her choice away? Again? Yes. Was it worth her time and energy? No. It would get her nowhere. And she had already blown up on Sasuke about all of this.

Guilt wormed its way into her stomach, making her feel sick. Hinata chastised herself for going off on Sasuke like that again. It had been cathartic and she knew she needed to set him straight on a few things, but it probably wasn't the right way to do it.

Hinata sighed.

She hated when her emotions got the best of her. They rarely did, but that only made it all the worse when she was derailed by them because she wasn't sure how to handle it. Hinata usually had a rather level disposition, but lately… Well, ever since Neji died it's felt like she had a hurricane in her chest.

Thinking better of it, Hinata turned around and decided to go to her room. She would avoid her father for the next couple days and then say something to him when she was more composed.

"Hello, sister."

Hinata winced. She hadn't spoken with her sister since Hanabi had insisted on helping her. Which, Hinata could have accepted graciously, but refused. From the way Hanabi's smile tightened and the way she wrung her hands behind her back, Hinata knew that Hanabi was still upset with her.

She should have just lied and said she had been troubled by something else.

At least Hanabi wouldn't be looking at her this way. As if Hinata had slapped her across the face when all Hanabi had offered was help. Hinata wasn't ready to share that burden though. Not with anyone, let alone her sister who would be more impacted by her feelings.

"Hello Hanabi-chan. What're you up to today?" Hinata asked with a smile, trying to make light of the awkward situation.

"Well," Hanabi sighed as if she had the weight of the world pushing down on her. "I have training with father today, and I already finished today at the academy, so my day's mostly done." Hanabi smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"What have you been up to today, sister?" Hanabi's forced smile went wider. She must have thought that it would appear more realistic, but it was rather off putting.

"I was called to the Hokage's office and was planning to train later." Hinata said, conveniently omitting her interaction with Sasuke. As far as she could tell, her family was not aware of how often she visited with him, and she wanted to keep it that way for as long as possible. Eventually, someone would let them know or they would hear, she was certain of that, but she wanted to avoid all of the trouble that would come with it.

"I heard you were at Uchiha's house today."

The blood drained from Hinata's face, it felt like someone had just doused her in ice.

"Wh-what? Wh-Who said that?" Hinata stuttered out.

Hanabi's smile grew into a knowing grin. "You just confirmed it, but I've heard rumors recently. Villagers like to gossip." Hanabi watched as Hinata's face went red. She found it amusing that her sister was so uncomfortable with this. Hanabi knew some of what had happened between Sasuke and Hinata during the war, but Hinata had never told Hanabi exactly what happened. Hanabi got the impression that Hinata felt bad for him to some extent, but held no ill feelings for him.

Hanabi didn't really feel either way about the last Uchiha. She wasn't a fan, but she didn't blame him for his escapades. If Hanabi had been in the same position, and her family had been wiped out by another family member, she probably would have done some crazy things too.

That didn't mean she liked him though.

"Why are you visiting the Uchiha, Hinata?" Hanabi said, getting right to the point.

Hinata wasn't sure how to respond because she didn't really know herself. She felt some sort of guilt, but that didn't quite cover it, especially after today. "I think…" Hinata hesitated. "I think it's because he needs a friend too." Hinata said quietly.

Hanabi thought about that for a second. Ever since they were children, Hanabi had known that her sister had a soft heart. Hinata had always taken care of the underdog and helped lost causes. Hanabi had a distinct memory of Hinata finding an injured bird when they were children, and that Hinata had secretly taken care of it until it was able to fly again. Father had punished her for wasting food and time on such a feeble creature, and at the time Hanabi had agreed.

Now, Hanabi knew that it was a part of who Hinata was. Her older sister took care of people who needed help. She disagreed, but respected it. Hanabi also knew that her sister was more than capable of looking after herself.

"Well, be smart about it." Hanabi sighed, knowing she couldn't talk her sister out befriending the Uchiha. People would likely disagree, but Hanabi knew that Hinata was just as stubborn as she was. Hinata just showed it differently. She wasn't as aggressive or direct about it, but she was stubborn, and she rarely let things go, especially things that she had strong opinions about.

Hinata nodded her head, acknowledging Hanabi's concern.

Hanabi crossed her arms in front of herself, looking rather surly.

"Do you want to go train?" Hanabi asked, looking away from Hinata, acting nonchalant about the invitation. But from her defensive stance and dusting of red on her cheeks, Hinata could tell that Hanabi cared more than a little about Hinata's response.

Hanabi wanted to spend time with her.

Hinata felt her heart swell with happiness for the first time in a while.

"Of course!" Hinata said enthusiastically.

Hanabi shrugged, trying to appear unaffected. "I can meet you at the dojo in 20 minutes if that works."

Hinata smiled. "Ok, little sister."

* * *

Hinata avoided Sasuke the next day and felt bad about it. She wasn't ready to face him, but knew that she needed to sooner rather than later.

It took some convincing on the second day that she should go see him and apologize. She dragged her feet through the day and tried to convince herself that she had numerous other responsibilities to fulfil. Unfortunately, the only other thing she needed to do was speak with her Father about the letters he had sent out, which ranked higher on Hinata's list of "things-to-avoid." Eventually, after pacing her room, Hinata came to the decision that she needed to visit Sasuke.

Which led to her current situation—awkwardly standing on Sasuke's property while watching him and Naruto duel.

After five minutes of waiting for the two to wrap up, Hinata realized that the two were nowhere near finished sparring. Thinking about leaving and possibly stopping by later, Hinata made eye contact with Sasuke. For a moment she thought that Sasuke seeing her might be enough for her to come back later, but Naruto had took Sasuke's momentary distraction for the opportunity to strike Sasuke in the jaw.

Hinata winced in sympathy. That was definitely going to cause Sasuke's jaw to swell. Nartuo was a fierce fighter and a wonderful shinobi, but he often times forgot how strong he was. Normally that wouldn't be a problem against Sasuke, but with Sasuke's seals he was at a significant disadvantage.

Feeling like she was a distraction, Hinata made to leave, but was stopped by the ANBU that were currently watching Sasuke.

"Hello, Hinata-chan." A voice muffled by a dog mask greeted.

Hinata smiled in kind. "Hello Dog-san, what can I do for you?"

Dog-san responded by handing Hinata a sealed scroll.

00000000000000000000

Sasuke noticed Hinata as soon as she came to the field. Her absence yesterday had called for desperate measures, and he had ended up sparring with Naruto. When she hadn't shown up first thing this morning, Sasuke decided to spar with Naruto again.

Now he was regretting that.

Of course Naruto would take the cheap shot to hit Sasuke square in the jaw at the first opportunity that he was distracted. Hinata had been playing with her hair. Well, it wasn't exactly playing, but she was moving her hair to one side and combing her fingers through it, and for some reason, it was extremely distracting.

Sasuke decided that it was because he hadn't seen something like that before. At least, not since he had last seen his mother do something like that. Hinata's hair was definitely longer. _Doesn't that get in the way?_ Sasuke wondered. It hadn't any of the times that they sparred, but he imagined that it was definitely possible. Especially with how she had her hair now—just pushed to one side with a hair tie near the bottom. If Sasuke remembered correctly, it was a standard Hyuuga style.

When Hinata smiled to the ANBU that were approaching her, Sasuke's heart skipped a beat. For some reason, watching her now made something akin to dread filled his belly.

Naruto jabbed at him and Sasuke grabbed Naruto's incoming fist. "Stop."

Naruto had the good sense to look offended. "What? We're in the middle of a spar!"

Sasuke ignored Naruto and made his way towards Hinata and the ANBU that were speaking with her. Sasuke watched as the dog-masked ANBU gave her a sealed scroll. _Does she have a mission?_ Sasuke wondered, an odd feeling spreading through his stomach to his toes. _Why is she here though? Is she still mad?_

"Hey," Sasuke interrupted the exchange between Hinata and the ANBU, causing Hinata's attention to shift to him. "What're you doing, Hyuuga?"

Chastising himself for his delivery, Sasuke watched as Hinata's face went red at his approach. He wasn't really sure why she did that all of the time, but he enjoyed it, so he wasn't about to complain about it.

"W-wel—"

"Hinata-chan, what're you doing here?" Naruto asked, having followed Sasuke from the field.

Glaring at Naruto for interrupting her, Sasuke asked again, "What are you doing, Hyuuga?"

Hinata didn't respond right away, and Sasuke took that as a sign that she was still upset with him. "I apologized the other day for what I said. I didn't mean it." Sasuke muttered, irritated that Naruto was standing there for this. He tried shooing Naruto away, but Naruto's interest was piqued when Sasuke used the word "apologize," and he wasn't about to leave.

"What did you do, bastard?" Naruto asked, his blue eyes narrowing at Sasuke.

Shrugging, Sasuke attempted to appear somewhat aloof. He didn't care what the Hyuuga thought, and he certainly didn't care what Naruto thought, but he didn't want to share everything that had happened the other day with others.

"It was a misunderstanding, Uzumaki-san. No need for you to concern." Hinata smiled widely. "Thank you, though." Hinata added, motioning with the scroll in her hand.

"So, what are you doing, Hyuuga?" Sasuke asked again, irritation noticeable in his voice, but even he wasn't sure who it was aimed at.

"I wanted to ask if you would like to spar today, but it looks like you already have a partner…" Hinata hesitated, glancing down at her shinobi sandals.

"Naruto was just leaving."

"Excuse me—"

Sasuke shoved Naruto's shoulder. "You were just leaving."

"I guess!" Naruto snapped, rubbing his shoulder and looking hurt by Sasuke's treatment of him. And more than a little offended at Hinata's use of "Uzumaki-san."

Trying to keep the peace, Hinata put her arms out in front of her, gesturing for the two boys to stop. "I can't spar today, unfortunately." Hinata pointedly glanced at the scroll in her hand. "I can come back at our usual time in a couple days though, Sasuke." Hinata smiled at Sasuke, a light blush dusting her cheeks.

Naruto looked aghast.

A smirk spread across Sasuke's face, and his chest swelled. Sasuke found the blush to be rather amusing. He didn't understand it, but he enjoyed it, so he wasn't going to complain about it. A part of him wondered just how much she blushed and why…

"Hn." Sasuke responded shortly, suddenly finding it difficult to speak.

"Wait, where are you going, Hinata-chan?" Naruto's nose wrinkled in confusion.

Sasuke dragged a tired hand across his face. "She can't tell you that, idiot."

Glancing between the two, Hinata noticed that Sasuke and Naruto bickered like brothers or an old married couple. Either way, she could help end this quickly, even if she didn't really want to intervene. "Sorry, Naruto, I can't tell anyone where I'm going.

Naruto grinned. Understanding dawning on him.

The last Uchiha wanted to slap that grin right off of Naruto's face.

Bowing quickly, Hinata thanked the ANBU for informing her of her mission. Hinata looked to Sasuke and smiled, this one spreading to her eyes. "I'll see you soon, Sasuke."

Sasuke's stomach flipped.

"Hn."

* * *

Kakashi stared at the document in front of him. At first he thought he was hallucinating or the document was a fake, mostly because it fixed a majority of his problems. Which was highly unusual.

Shizune had done as he'd asked the other day and grabbed all Hyuuga clan documents and all clan law documents.

As much as he wanted to help Hinata, Kakashi had doubted that he would find anything that was even remotely helpful in the Hyuuga clan's documents. He had promised that he would try though, and he did.

So it was much to his surprise that, rather quickly, he found a possible solution to his problem.

Before him, on the Hokage's desk, was a marriage contract dating back 16 years, to when Hinata and Sasuke were only toddlers. The Hyuuga had met with the Uchiha, when the Uchiha were a powerful and proud clan that had their sights set on bringing about great change in the village.

Well, that was the nice way of putting it.

It had appeared that the Uchiha were looking to overthrow the Hokage. It was likely that the Hyuuga had moved to protect themselves. Kakashi seriously doubted that the Hyuuga wouldn't be aware of what was going on.

Kakashi double-checked the date on the contract to ensure its authenticity.

If he remembered correctly, the date of the contract was around the time that the Hyuuga Matriarch died, meaning it was around the time Hyuuga Hanabi had been born. Kakashi remembered how devastated the whole Hyuuga clan had been at her passing.

She had been a gentle and kind woman, at least from what he had heard. Recently, he was hearing more and more that Hinata resembled her greatly.

 _Perhaps Hiashi had anticipated another heir? No. That doesn't make sense._ Kakshi wondered, perplexed at Hiashi's choice.

Either way it didn't matter. This contract was made to marry the Hyuuga's first born to the Uchiha's heir. Which meant Sasuke had a wife, and Hinata had a way out of leaving the village. _Is this better, though?_ A part of Kakashi selfishly thought that this was the perfect situation for Sasuke. Hinata would be a wonderful wife and matriarch to the Uchiha, and she was just the type of understanding and strong person that Sasuke needed to stay on track.

Was it selfish to hope for the best for his student? Was it selfish to put a demon like Sasuke with a kindhearted angel like Hinata?

Kakashi rid himself of that line of thinking. It didn't matter. It was a valid contract, so Hinata would be marrying Sasuke. Still, a part of him knew that it would be merciful and likely kind to burn it, as he was sure the Hyuuga had.

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Thank you for reading!_

 _Don't forget to REVIEW! It really motivates me._

 _Thank you again!_


	12. PART ONE: Chapter 11

_Author's Note:_

 _I'm so sorry for the wait! Life has been exceptionally hectic these past couple weeks. I got engaged, my fiancé got in a car accident, and school has midterms and papers due._

 _Anyway, I'm sorry for the wait! I hope you enjoy!_

 _Thank you!_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

* * *

PART ONE

Chapter Eleven: Fists and Fury

* * *

After two days of waiting for Hinata, Sasuke was irritated. The ANBU rarely talked to him, even though they dropped his food off every other day, so it was difficult to know what exactly was going on.

Now that it was almost a week since he had last seen Hinata, Sasuke was moving towards pissed.

Sasuke was certain, from their conversation the other day, that Hinata was no longer mad at him. She had actually seemed genuinely happy to be around him. Plus, it was Hinata who had suggested they go back to training together every day.

Plus, Hinata should be getting her sword from Tenten soon, and she had made it clear that she wanted Sasuke to help her train with that weapon specifically. The Hyuuga had also suggested that she would arrange for him to have his sword back soon enough. Which he told her he needed—especially to train her with her sword. Being able to show her what to do through practice and observation was going to be the best way to teach her.

That, and Sasuke really wanted his sword back.

He felt naked without it.

Normally he kept his sword on a sling that left it resting on his back. The weight of it making him feel confident and safe, even if he wouldn't admit that to others. A majority of his training after Konoha revolved around that sword, and to be without it felt like he was missing a limb.

At least all this effort with the Hyuuga would result in something good, even if she ended up married and whisked away to another village. She wouldn't be his problem anymore. He wouldn't have to train with her anymore. And he wouldn't have to worry about her existence anymore—rather, he wouldn't have to worry about how her being dead would affect his life because it wouldn't.

Sasuke felt his stomach churn.

 _Probably because the Hyuuga still isn't back and all my hard work will have been for nothing._ Sasuke explained away to himself.

Sure, he remembered the Hyuuga girl from when they were younger. Sure, he had found her interesting then and still does now. That doesn't mean anything beyond that.

Back in the academy, Sasuke had been extremely focused on his goals. He needed to be stronger so that he could obtain his goal of killing his brother to avenge his family. At times, he lost focus of that when he was young, but he always found his way back to his family's vengeance being the most important thing in his life.

Sometimes he had time to notice that the Hyuuga girl was odd and quirky. She didn't make a whole lot of sense sometimes either, especially with her fascination with Naruto. He hadn't been sure what that was about at the time, just thinking her odd, but looking back now it makes sense. Hinata had been infatuated with Naruto in a way that affected her deeply. Sasuke wasn't sure why, but she obviously found value in Naruto.

From all of Sasuke's training sessions with Hinata, it was apparent that she valued persistence. He understood that. To be a decent shinobi it takes half skill and half persistence. Both are necessary.

 _That actually explains a lot about her…_

Looking up, Sasuke's thoughts were interrupted by the ANBU dropping food off again for him, as was routine at this point. They always brought bags of groceries and supplies and left them at his front step. He understood why they didn't come in, because he was likely to attack them out of habit, but he did not appreciate the fact that they left his food where animals could take it.

Which was why he had taken to waiting at the front porch at dawn, when the shift change usually happened, in anticipation of his supplies being dropped off.

"Where is the Hyuuga?"

"Excuse me?"

Sasuke snorted at the ANBU. "You heard me. Where is she?"

The ANBU shook his head. "You know I can't tell you that."

Sasuke rolled his eyes in irritation. "You know what I mean. Is she done with her mission or what?" Sasuke snapped.

The ANBU appeared taken aback by Sasuke, but still looked like they were not inclined to answer him. That lit a fire in Sasuke's chest. If he had his full abilities right now, this man would be begging for mercy by now. Groveling at his feet for forgiveness and telling Sasuke everything he wanted to know.

As things were currently, that was not an option that Sasuke had. Which made him even more irritated

Sasuke's eyes lit up. Chakra being called to them out of instinct. Whenever his blood pressure went past a certain point, his eyes reacted. It was just part of having his eyes. He assumed that all Uchiha ran into this problem after having their sharingan for as long as he had, but Sasuke didn't have anyone to ask—given that everyone was dead—so he couldn't know for sure.

As the chakra built behind his eyes, Sasuke noticed the ANBU falter. The man definitely felt Sasuke's blood lust, but knew full well that Sasuke was incapable of acting on it right now.

That didn't change the fact that it was intimidating though.

"S-she's…" the ANBU cleared his throat. "She's still on her mission." The ANBU clarified, shrugging and easing himself away from Sasuke—just trying to do his job.

"What the hell. I thought she was supposed to be back days ago?"

The ANBU shrugged, obliviously at a loss for words.

"Hn." Sasuke grunted, his irritation building. "Tell Kakashi I want to see him."

"We can't—"

Sasuke snatched the bags of food and slammed his front door in the ANBU's face.

"—do that." Sasuke heard from the other side of the door. He knew that the ANBU provided Kakashi with reports of his behavior. They'd tell Kakashi what happened today at the end of their shift, and Sasuke would see Kakashi. That worked for him.

Then he could get some answers.

 _And see about getting back my fucking sword._

* * *

 _"F-follow me, S-sasuke-kun!"_

 _"I told you not to call me that!" Sasuke yelled at the girl he was chasing. She irritated him, but not the same way that everyone else did. She was nice, a little odd, and entertaining. Her stutter was incredibly irritating, though. Every chance he got, he corrected her and chastised her, but if anyone else said anything, there was hell to pay._

 _Sasuke felt elated that she was here, but there was a sick nervousness under that happiness. As if something horrible was about to happen at any second._

 _Chasing after the girl and her fit of giggles, Sasuke felt his soul soar. She felt like freedom and happiness. She felt like sunshine, and he just wanted to be near her, and he could not explain why. At least, that was all the five-year-old could equate the feeling to._

 _Sasuke caught up to her when she stumbled to a stop, bumping into her._

 _"Hey!" Sasuke shouted, irritated that their game was over, she rarely came over, and even though she was odd, she was the most fun to play with._

 _Sasuke immediately regretted yelling at her, realizing that something was horribly wrong. The girl stood still, but it seemed like she was vibrating and humming with energy._

" _What's wrong?" Sasuke asked, looking around and trying to understand._

 _The girl didn't answer, and Sasuke realized that she wasn't what was vibrating and buzzing with energy. Everything else was. She was the only thing standing still._

" _H-hey! What's going on?"_

 _Sasuke ran in front of the girl so he could look at her. Trying to understand. He felt fuzzy, but he wanted to understand._

 _All he saw was the ground slick with red and the girl crying. Her hands were covered in it._

 _Sasuke felt lightning strike through him. He was familiar with the feeling._

 _Memories flooded through him. His parents being murdered in front of him and not being able to do anything about it. His brother dying in front of him, at his hand. Regret eating him alive like hundreds of bugs until there was nothing left but bones._

* * *

Sasuke woke up screaming more often than not. He was used to it at this point. His dreams usually ended with his parents crying out for him. Sometimes for help, sometimes because they hated him for what he did or failed to do, and sometimes it was just their lifeless eyes staring at him, accusing him of all his failures.

This dream had been…odd.

He had no memories of chasing a little girl—ever. That's it. He knew no little girls when he was younger, at least not that he remembered, and he hadn't had any girl cousins that were close to his age when he was young.

And yet, the dream felt like a memory.

Sasuke tried to hold onto it, but the details of the dream quickly faded away. It wasn't important anyway. If it was, he would have remembered it in the first place. This had to be because he was back in Konoha. The place was giving him stress dreams.

* * *

Sasuke slept fitfully after waking up the first time because of his odd dream. He kept having different versions of the same dream, all ending with the girl crying with blood on her hands. The only thing was, Sasuke did not remember this girl at all, and any identifiable features she had slipped away from him by the time he woke up.

So once again, Sasuke started the day off irritated.

Naruto coming over for a spar was just a lucky coincidence.

After a half hour of sparring with only taijutsu, Sasuke was livid and breathing hard. He was tired of his chakra being so limited. It didn't help that it made it seem like Naruto was leaps and bounds ahead of him.

Naruto feeling guilty about it though was a nice plus. It definitely helped even the playing field, or at least made it feel like it because of Naruto holding back.

Even though Sasuke hated the fact that Naruto was holding back, it didn't make repeatedly punching Naruto in the face any less satisfying. At this point, it was routine for Sasuke to take out his feelings on Naruto—at least to some extent. It had been when they were younger, and they were back in that routine again.

Of course, Kakashi chose that time to interrupt.

"Sasuke! What are you doing?" Kakashi asked, suddenly standing beside Sasuke as he punched another Naruto clone in the face.

Sasuke gave Kakashi a sarcastic look that said "What does it look like?"

"Well stop beating up Naruto, you have more pressing matters to address." Kakashi chastised.

"Like what?" Sasuke snapped. "I'm not allowed to leave or to do just about anything, and my other main source of entertainment is missing."

Kakashi raised his one visible eyebrow at that. "What do you mean, other source of entertainment?"

"I mean the Hyuuga girl. She comes by all the time and we train together. You sent her away on a mission a few days ago and I haven't seen her since, so it's been exceptionally boring." Sasuke said. Sasuke was trying to sound annoyed but disinterested at the same time, which was why he continued to spar with Naruto while speaking to Kakashi.

"Ah, well, she should be returning today or tomorrow. There was a delay in her mission."

Sasuke froze for a second, the sight of Hinata being wounded and bleeding out flashed before his eyes. Naruto took this opportunity to strike Sasuke with some pay back. Sasuke spun with the blow he received to his gut and pushed Naruto to the ground. Seeing that this wasn't a clone, Sasuke took a foot and stood on top of Naruto to keep him down while he talked.

"So she's on her way then?" Sasuke grit out.

Kakashi shrugged with a smile. "It's hard to keep tabs on ANBU, especially her team."

Sasuke tossed Kakashi an incredulous look. _How are you Hokage?_ Sasuke thought, his irritation rising.

"What does that even mean?" Sasuke snapped, his irritation bubbling over to show in his voice.

"It means, I don't actually know, and I can't actually tell you anyway." Kakashi said, continuing to smile.

"Hn." Sasuke sighed lightly. This presented a slight problem for him. He was definitely not on schedule for his plan at this point, and he wasn't sure how to get back on track, especially with the threat of her leaving the village looming.

Grunting, Naruto escaped from under Sasuke's foot. "What the hell was that for!" Naruto griped, dusting himself off.

Ignoring Naruto, Sasuke walked away from the scuffled looking blonde and contemplated how to sabotage Hinata's future suitor.

"You'd think you'd at least keep track of the person in control of all of my seals." Sasuke chided. "She is somewhat important, you know, so that I can actually be a functioning person again."

Kakashi nodded his head, following along with Sasuke's line of thought.

"So shouldn't she, I donno, be assigned to stay with me or something?" Sasuke offered, sounding irritated even though he had just stumbled upon a perfect solution to his problems.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at Sasuke's suggestion. "I sincerely doubt that her father would allow her to sleep in your house…" Kakashi paused, weighing his options as he took in Sasuke's demeanor.

For all his training and knowledge, Sasuke was still a bad liar. He was decent at sounding apathetic and disinterested, but bad at convincing the rest of his body that he felt that way. Sasuke looked tense, and deeply invested in whatever Kakashi was about to say. The Sixth Hokage wasn't exactly sure what to make of that, but took note of it none the less. The fact that Sasuke might have some sort of interest in Hinata definitely helped.

And Kakashi did enjoy killing two birds with one stone.

"But, I will think about it." Kakashi decided, smiling.

Sasuke let out an irritated grunt. "You know, the least you could do is give me my sword back for all my trouble." Sasuke figured he might as well reach for more while he was at it.

Kakashi cocked his head to the side, appearing pensive for a moment. "Now Sasuke, why would you need something like that?" Kakashi smiled, obviously messing with Sasuke. "I think we'll wait a little longer on that."

"I need it to train Hinata." Sasuke snapped. "You could keep it locked up outside of training or something, but she asked me to help her with weapons training, and I need my sword to do that."

"Hrm." Kakashi hummed. "Well, I'll have to think about that then, too."

Sasuke groaned in irritation.

* * *

Hinata was absolutely exhausted. After days on her mission, she felt like she couldn't bear to stand a moment longer. She had just finished informing the Hokage of her team's arrival and debriefed him. Hinata still had to shower though, because there was no way she was crawling in bed covered in grime.

A part of her cursed Kiba and Shino for making her debrief this time, but it was only fair. They were supposed to trade off, but she somehow always ended up with the responsibility of doing it. Which was likely part of her admittance into ANBU as a Captain.

Sometimes it didn't feel real for Hinata, but times like this, when she was covered in mud and blood, it was incredibly real—and not just because she could smell it. Tonight she felt the fact that she was an ANBU in her bones. It made her body ache in ways she never thought possible, but she was still elated that she made it.

Neji would be proud of her, she was sure of it.

A sigh of relief escaped Hinata when she caught sight of her bedroom window. The light was on, which was odd, but it was possible that the maids knew of her arrival home. Kakashi was good about keeping her family informed of her comings and goings, even when she wasn't. It made things a lot easier on her, and them.

Hopping onto her windowsill, Hinata pried her window open and dropped deftly into her room.

Her father standing in her room waiting for her was definitely a shock.

"F-father!" Hinata yelped. "Wh-what are you doing here?" Hinata tried to hide her shock. She had assumed that a maid had been in her room, and she had been very very wrong.

"You have been avoiding me, Hinata." Hiashi deadpanned, looking glum. "I decided to wait for you where I knew you would definitely be when you arrived home."

Hinata felt guilt tug at her heart. She had been avoiding her father, only because she did not want to confront him. But, Hinata never would have guessed that he had noticed her avoidance. Hiding emotions was never her strong suit, but she did not realize that her father paid enough attention to her comings and goings to notice that she had been avoiding him all together.

"I'm sorry, father." Hinata looked down, feeling chastised. "I heard about the…" Hinata hesitated. She didn't want to talk about this. For the past week she had avoided thinking about being married off by focusing all of her attention on her mission. Of course all that effort was proven worthless as soon as she came home.

"I heard about the letters you sent out regarding my need of suitors and—I just—I felt—" Hinata put her hands up, finding herself at a lack for words and full of frustration. Hinata looked around the room, trying to focus on everything but her father. She couldn't bring herself to look at him, but seeing everything was just making her feel more trapped.

Covering her face with her hands, Hinata gathered her thoughts. This was important and she didn't want to mess it up. Hinata loved her father, but he needed to understand.

Hinata took a breath and set her arms at her sides.

"You took the one choice I had left away from me."

It felt like the air had been sucked out of the room, but Hinata still felt relieved. She hadn't even realized that she had been shaking, but it made sense. It felt like she was bubbling with every emotion imaginable, and she wasn't sure how to contain it all.

Before Neji's death she had been shy, but she had been level headed.

Now, everything felt off balance.

All the time.

Hiashi took in a deep breath and sighed.

"I knew you would see it at some point, but I did what I needed to do." Hiashi said, sounding defeated. "I did what I needed to do to protect you, and I'm sorry that it still ended up hurting you." Hiashi grimaced, searching Hinata's face.

Taking a step forward, Hiashi cautiously approached Hinata. "I'm sorry, Hinata. I needed to protect you, and that meant moving forward and doing what I thought was best I—" Hiashi faltered. Hesitating in his approach when he saw that Hinata was on the verge of tears. Maybe he had chosen wrong. Maybe he should have waited. Maybe he should have—

Hiashi steeled himself. "I'm sorry that you feel that way, but I did what I thought was necessary." Hiashi deadpanned, stepping away from Hinata. Giving her a moment to collect herself, Hiashi stood there, waiting for her heaves tears to quell themselves.

"You have suitors who are arriving tomorrow. Be prepared to entertain them for the foreseeable future. I will make Hokage-sama aware of the necessity for you to be at home." Hiashi stated, all business now that he had locked away his emotions. "We will expect you at dinner tomorrow. Do not be late." Hiashi finished, and headed to Hinata's door.

Passing through the doorway, Hiashi looked back at his now crying daughter and hesitated. He should comfort her. Her mother would have. But that's not who Hiashi was or who he could be for anyone. Being the clan head meant remaining strong and steadfast, even at the bleakest of times.

Hiashi quietly shut the door and left Hinata to her thoughts.

* * *

The next morning was dreary. Hinata didn't want to get out of bed, but the idea of staying at home and greeting the suitors as they arrived sounded horrifying. So she quickly and quietly go up before dawn. She had cried for a good portion of the night, and hardly slept, but that didn't matter. Leaving the house would at least distract her form her thoughts.

Donning her favorite outfit of late for training, Hinata left the house in her all black pants and shirt, her ninja mesh creeping out onto her arms from under her shirt. It had taken a while to figure out how to cover the ANBU tattoo. Hinata had come to the conclusion that sleeveless shirts were simply off the table for the foreseeable future.

Hinata tried to enjoy the gloomy morning. The fact that the sky looked like it was ready to pour at any minute did not help her mood at all. However, the fact that she was heading to Sasuke's helped. She hadn't seen him in over a week. He was sure to be irritated with her, which made her giggle. The mission going on for as long as it did was hardly her fault, but he would act as if it was, Hinata was sure of it.

That didn't matter that much though. Sasuke would quickly get over it when she told him that he was allowed to have his sword for training purposes as soon as she retrieves it. Kakashi had also asked her to pass on the message to Sasuke that "his other request is pending, but it looks promising."

Hinata wasn't sure what it was, but Kakashi had been grinning from ear to ear.

Arriving at Sasuke's Hinata felt her body hum. She knew that sparring with Sasuke was helping hone her skills, and it also helped a great deal with processing her emotions. Maybe she could even work through the fact that her father had suitors arriving later today.

A smile spreading across her face, Hinata reached out to knock on Sasuke's door, only for the door to swing open before she could even touch it.

"You're back."

Hinata's face flushed at Sasuke's proximity. No matter how often they sparred, she was still not used to how attractive he was. He was taller than her, his hair was an inky black and messy, but definitely healthy. He looked more like how he had been before the war—like a force to be reckoned with.

Hinata felt Sasuke's chakra crackle in the air between them. She knew his chakra was inclined towards fire nature when they were children, but it had moved more towards lightning as they'd grown up. As Sasuke received more and more access to his chakra, soon his chakra was going to be wafting off of him with the power of it.

"Y-yes, I am." Hinata smiled, starting to relax at the prospect of being around Sasuke.

"Well, come on then." Sauske said, pushing past Hinata and walking immediately towards the field. Hinata felt his chakra crackle against her arm, setting her skin on fire with the power of it. Hinata felt her stomach flip.

She really enjoyed sparring with Sasuke—even if he was odd.

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Thank you for reading!_

 _Don't forget to REVIEW!_ :)


	13. PART ONE: Chapter 12

_Author's Note:_

 _Sorry this took so long! It has been crazy hectic at school, and I was struggling with parts of this chapter. I wanted to make sure that everything feels natural and not incredibly forced. I appreciate all your reviews! They really motivate me and let me know that there are people who are enjoying this story. Things will be moving a little more quickly soon, so get ready!_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

PART ONE

Chapter Twelve: Options

Sasuke sparred with Hinata for the better part of an hour. Now that he had more chakra in his system, he was giving her a harder time. Even though it was only the lowest chakra seal, the difference was astounding. The amount of chakra that had been released made him feel more like himself, even if it was still a low amount.

Now, with the amount that he had in his system, it felt more like he'd been sparring all day without any rest instead of the fatigue he had felt before.

"So, after I beat you in this match, you're going to get my sword back, right?" Sasuke smirked.

Hinata huffed, trying to feign offense when she really wanted to laugh.

"Who said anything about you beating me today?" Hinata asked, with a giggle barely contained in her voice. "If I remember correctly, I said I can bring it to you for training purposes. That means it needs to be locked away when we're not training." Hinata said, spinning to block Sasuke's incoming onslaught.

"Hn." Sasuke grunted, not exactly pleased with her flippant response at his expense. "So you're saying I only get to use my sword when you allow me to." Sasuke grumbled, trying to hide his irritation.

"No, others will be able to get the sword out for you, like the ANBU or Naruto. People that know you spar and either observe or practice with you." Hinata a clarified, pushing around Sasuke's jab to hit him right in the chest.

Sasuke grunted at the blow. "And that means it's not when I decide to use it, but when others decide to let me." Sasuke said bitterly, grabbing Hinata by the arm that had just hit him. Twisting her around by her arm until he had it pinned against her back, Sasuke's face fell. He had been enjoying this spar, but knowing that his sword was going to be used as another way to control him did not make him feel better about his situation.

"Well," Hinata's face scrunched up in concentration, she needed to choose her next words carefully, or all progress with Sasuke would prove pointless very quickly. He was like a scared doe, in that he spooked easily from human contact, whatever kind it was, he didn't want it. "It's more so that you have checks and balances. It makes sure that you can't abuse your power, but it gives you a little more freedom. You'll be able to ask for it for practice, but the ANBU, or whoever you're sparring with, will have to put it away when you're done."

Sasuke snorted, "Meaning I'll be treated like I'm a child."

Hinata shook her head, tempted to roll her eyes. She was getting irritated with his persistent view of playing the victim.

Elbowing him in the gut, Hinata spun out of Sasuke's grip when he released her out of reflex.

"You could look at it as an opportunity to gain more trust." Hinata suggested with a shrug. "Hokage-sama even said that he was working on your 'other request,' which means if you handle this well, you'll probably get whatever you asked for." Hinata smiled, trying to reassure Sasuke that cooperating was the best option.

Sasuke seemed to consider that for a moment, contemplating his options. If he played this correctly, he could end up having Hinata in his house, with her trusting him, and her feeling like she owed him. That could lead to her helping him out of the village when he was finally able to escape.

An image of Hinata helping him in _other_ ways flashed before his eyes, which was odd. He didn't think of her that way. He was certain of it. Sasuke's denial seemed to only make it worse, because then he was imaging running his hands through her hair, and kissing her deeply.

 _What the hell?_ Sasuke was floored by the thought. Obviously there was something wrong with him.

Hinata noticed that Sasuke was appearing more and more distracted, and somewhat distraught. Before she could think better of it, she took that opportunity to strike. Darting forward, Hinata slammed an open palm into Sasuke's chest.

The abrupt contact alarmed Sasuke, making his eyes go wide. He'd allowed himself to be distracted at the wrong moment. Throwing himself into motion, Sasuke flipped backwards, using the momentum from the hit to propel him further away from Hinata. Masking his confusion as disinterest, Sasuke tried to play off the hit as if he had let her take the shot.

"I thought you could use the win," he said sharply, avoiding eye contact with Hinata. "Given your situation and the way you looked when you go there."

Hinata raised an eyebrow at Sasuke. "And what does that mean?"

Sasuke gestured at Hinata, thrusting a hand in her direction. "You know, with the whole looming arranged marriage thing." Sasuke said, not realizing how insensitive that actually came off.

Hinata bristled, instantly regretting telling him anything. "I'm under a lot of pressure right now, and I shouldn't have shared that information with you."

Sasuke flinched. "I didn't mean it that way. I just meant, you seemed upset, and that it makes sense."

Hinata grunted dismissively, sounding an awful lot like Sasuke. She crossed her arms in front of her chest, wanting to remove herself from this situation and Sasuke's presence in general.

Unsure how he had put his foot in his mouth so badly, Sasuke moved slowly closer to Hinata. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it that way." Sasuke said, unable to look at Hinata's face. Guilt filling his belly.

Shrugging off the apology, Hinata took a step closer to Sasuke, realizing she overacted. "I'm sorry, I'm…" Hinata trailed off, unsure of how much she wanted to share. "I'm a little touchy about that still. I had blocked it out through my whole mission, only to be slapped in the face with it as soon as I got home." Hinata brought her hands to her face, covering it so Sasuke couldn't see how upset she really was.

Before Hinata knew it, she was venting and spilling it all out to Sasuke. "My father was waiting for me as soon as I got home. I've been avoiding him ever since I found out that he sent out letters about marrying me off—which I feel guilty about, but the other option is arguing with him about it, and I don't want to do that." Hinata threw her hands up. "I just don't even know what to do. And, of course, the first thing he said to me was that I will be having dinner with some suitors tonight, which is infuriating. I don't even get to decide things on my own schedule!"

Hinata huffed and collapsed to the ground. The feeling of defeat weighing down on her as she stared at the almost knee length grass.

"I just feel like I'm being robbed of another choice in my life after I was finally feeling like I was getting to go on my own path." Hinata sighed, closing her eyes and letting the thought sink in. She had been moving on her own path since Neji died, and this arranged marriage thing disrupted that in the biggest way possible.

Opening her eyes, Hinata realized she possibly overshared with Sasuke, because he looked shocked and at a loss for words. Hinata hadn't expected him to respond with some sort of wisdom, she just needed to get her feelings out, because they had been filling up all the space in her chest and weighing her down with the sheer power of her emotions.

Sasuke, unsure of what to do with himself, looked away from Hinata and towards the sky. As if that would somehow give him a way to respond. He understood being stifled by emotions to the point that he felt like he was drowning in them at times. He just wasn't sure how to help with that.

The fact that he wanted to help at all confused him. Sure, Sasuke was trying to get Hinata to trust him and help him eventually, which meant he needed to _act_ like he wanted to help her, but for some reason it wasn't feeling like an act anymore.

Her hands crunching the grass as she pushed herself back up to her feet, Hinata decided to let Sasuke off the hook. They were becoming closer friends, but he didn't have advice for her, and that was ok. She didn't need advice, she just needed someone to listen.

Waving off his concern, Hinata found herself comforting Sasuke. "I didn't mean to go off like that. I'm not normally like this." Hinata shrugged.

Sasuke chuckled at that. "Rage will make you do that."

Eyebrows knitting together, Hinata assessed Sasuke's response. She hadn't thought of an actual name for these bubbling emotions in her chest, but rage made a lot of sense. She just wasn't very familiar with it.

Hinata tilted her head in thought. "That makes a lot of sense, actually."

Sasuke snorted. "You're something else, Hyuuga."

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Hours later, Hinata found herself grateful that Sasuke hadn't provided advice, and just listened. It was, oddly enough, exactly what she needed. Getting advice would have felt condescending, especially from someone that would never understand her actual predicament.

Now that she was getting ready for dinner, she needed to hold onto that sentiment, because she wanted to be as far from here as possible. The fact that Sasuke was starting to be more like a friend to her, was encouraging. It meant that her efforts were working, which was more than she could say for most things in her life at the moment.

Hinata sighed, staring at herself in her mirror.

As soon as she arrived home, branch member maids were waiting for her. Apparently her father had ordered them to make sure that she dressed appropriately for dinner tonight. This was something she was familiar with for when the Hyuuga entertained foreign ambassadors or leadership from equally powerful clans from other villages. Still, it felt different this time because it was for the purpose of marrying her off to one of the suitors, who were from different villages and countries.

Normally, a dinner of entertaining guests was awkward. It set her nerves on fire because of worrying about doing or saying the wrong thing. This felt like that, only ten times worse, because she had to pretend that she was interested and happy. Which, normally, pretending to be interested in conversation with dignitaries was easy, because she was. Hinata was not interested in marrying any time soon though, so that would be hard. Feigning interest in becoming a wife that ran a household and had babies, when all she wanted to do was be an ANBU Captain.

The one plus in all this was that the kitchen usually was pulling out all the stops and making the best food that they possibly could for the dinner.

If she could get through this tonight, then she could talk to Kakashi tomorrow, and see if he found anything. Or if he had any long missions that he could send her on that were a long time commitment. Anything to get her out of the Hyuuga compound.

Sighing, Hinata watched as one of the maids gathered her hair into sections and placed ornate combs in her heavy locks. She hated when they did her hair this way, because it pulled and tugged at her scalp. It was painful, but she knew they were only doing their job. Her hair always ended up looking pretty when they did it this way, it just wasn't like her, at all.

When Hiyori finished with Hinata's hair, she set her hands on Hinata's shoulders, jolting Hinata out of her reverie. Her eyes went wide with alarm for a moment, before settling down. "My apologies, Hinata-sama, but it is time to go down," the woman had a calming and even voice that Hinata had always appreciated, especially after her mother had died.

"Thank you, Hiyori-san," Hinata muttered, pushing herself up from her vanity. Hinata bowed quickly and followed her maid out of her room, her stomach sinking as she went.

Hinata hesitated for a moment in the hallway, her feet feeling like lead. "Hiyori-san…" Hinata trailed off, unsure of herself.

"What is it, Hinata-sama?" Hiyori smiled, her wrinkled face crinkling.

Hinata shook her head, deciding against asking about the suitors that were waiting downstairs for her. "Nothing. Thank you." Hinata forced a calming smile. She didn't need anyone thinking that she had any hesitations.

"If you say so," Hiyori bowed, her long grey hair sliding over her shoulder.

Taking a breath, Hinata assessed herself, and took stock of all of the thoughts that were bouncing around in her head. She didn't want to be here, but that didn't matter. She felt ridiculous in such an ornate kimono, but it wasn't her decision.

Hinata was also pretty sure that her father had chosen the deep purple kimono that had silver thread lining the edges, and a design of white and pink blossoms scattered across the cloth. It looked like she had blossoms tossed on her, and some had stuck while others had fallen to her feet. The matching obi was pink with white and silver ties.

Hinata felt out of sorts in it.

It was far too colorful and dramatic for her taste.

Hinata preferred more soothing or neutral colors. She would have at least preferred a lighter colored kimono. This felt like too much for her. Dressing this way made her feel like she was pretending to be someone she wasn't or she was a child wearing their mother's clothes.

It just wasn't Hinata.

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Gaara waiting for her at the dinner table had been a shock for Hinata.

She had been under the impression that all of the possible suitors would be people that she had never met. Seeing Gaara's flaming red head of hair there had been alarming and somehow soothing. Seeing him made her feel less out of sorts, but the idea of marrying her felt like she had been dosed in cold water.

"Are you not hungry, Hinata-chan?" Gaara murmured from his seat beside her, worry creasing his forehead.

Hinata and Gaara had become fast friends during the war. Only friends. Hinata was fairly certain that it was because of Naruto too, which made this feel even more weird.

"I'm fine, Gaara-sama, thank you."

Glancing around the table, Hinata took note of her suitors. A good number of them were obviously bothered by the Kazekage's presence at the table. Hinata was sure that how familiar Gaara was with her didn't help. It suggested that they were more than friends.

At the very head of the table sat Hiashi, looking absolutely livid.

Hinata grimaced. It wasn't her fault that the other suitors were bothered by the presence of someone else that she knew. She hadn't invited any of them. Hinata would have preferred none of them being in her home at the moment.

Forcing herself to remain calm, Hinata tried to casually eat her food while observing the suitors around her. There was a man speaking animatedly with her father, or at least, speaking at her father. Hiashi did not appear interested in anything the man had to say, but nodded whenever there was a pause in the conversation. He was attractive, and vaguely reminded Hinata of Naruto, if Naruto was extremely selfish and wealthy. Hinata was pretty sure she had heard him introduce himself as Takeuchi Taiga to Hanabi, but she wasn't sure.

Hinata flinched when she saw the man laugh and slap her father on the back.

Shaking her head, Hinata looked at the man sitting next to her and on her father's other side. He was quietly eating his dinner, and looked rather bored. He was obviously wealthy too, but Hinata couldn't place where he was from. He was wearing ornate clothing and had brown haired tied back into a long ponytail. He seemed handsome too, but there was something off putting about him. The way he seemed focused and clinical about everything around him.

Hinata took note and decided to find out his name so she could tell her father that she did not want it to end up being this one. She just wasn't sure why. As Hinata thought about this, the man looked up and met her eyes with piercing green eyes.

Smirking, he nodded in Hinata's direction.

Hinata felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment. Now the man would think she was interested. The petite Hyuuga held in a groan.

Across from herself was a man that had introduced himself as Ryuki when she had first sat down. Just, Ryuki. He seemed nice enough, pretty too, but eccentric. With white hair and purple eyes, Hinata wasn't sure that she had ever seen someone like him. He wore layers and layers of clothing, and made Hinata's kimono look bland.

Hinata watched as he picked at his food with a wrinkled nose. He appeared extremely disinterested in his surroundings.

Glancing down the table to Gaara's other side, Hinata tried to get Hanabi's attention. Hinata had hoped that Hanabi would take some of the pressure off of her when it came to talking to the suitors at dinner, but Hanabi was being extremely obstinate. To the point that she had yet to look up at all since she sat down.

To say that dinner was going badly, would be an understatement.

Hinata resisted lifting the linen tablecloth and crawling under the table. She desperately wanted to hide, but there was still at least half of the meal left.

"Ryuki-san, where was it you said you were from?" Hinata tried her best at making conversation.

Ryuki smiled politely and shook his head. "I didn't," he chuckled, "but I'm from a village in the Land of Snow." Ryuki smiled in good nature, obviously not offended by Hinata's question.

"How was your journey?" Hinata tried again, her face burning.

"It was alright, Hyuuga-san. It's still autumn, so the snow wasn't bad. I was surprised when I got to Konoha, I had been told that it would be extremely hot, but this isn't that bad."

Hinata smiled, "Well, it's been unseasonably cool lately, but we're nothing compared to Suna, right Gaara?"

Gaara nodded slowly.

Hinata waited for a moment, expecting Gaara to contribute to the conversation, but Gaara returned to his dinner.

Sighing, Hinata decided to focus on her dinner as well. She didn't want to get married anyway, so why bother with trying to get to know any of them anyway.

"Hyuuga-san, I was told that you are a shinobi. Is this true?" Ryuki asked, his nose wrinkled in disgust.

Hinata nodded, feeling somewhat uncomfortable. "Yes, I am."

"Oh, really? That's fascinating." Taiga said, sounding condescending at the end of the table. Leaning back in his chair, he rolled his eyes and laughed at Hinata's expense.

Hanabi took that opportunity to chime in, sensing where this line of conversation was going. "Do you think women cannot be shinobi, Takeuchi-san?" Hanabi asked, her demeanor calm but her voice livid.

Takeuchi Taiga laughed in response. "Of course not, it's ridiculous. How're they supposed to defend themselves? Their women! It's dangerous and irresponsible."

Smirking, Hanabi pushed herself away from the table and stared Taiga down. "Is that a challenge?"

"Hanabi, don't." Hinata hissed, leaning forward and trying to grab her sisters arm.

"Are you suggesting that my sister, Hinata, is incapable of being a shinobi?" Hanabi sneered.

Taiga roared with laughter. "Of course not, I mean—look at her." Taiga waved a muscled arm in Hinata's direction. " She can't possibly fight a man."

Hanabi jumped to her feet and pointed a kunai at the laughing man. "Hinata-nee-chan could kill you before you even s—!"

"Hanabi!" Hinata jumped up in alarm, sounding shocked. "Please! Sit down." Hinata hissed, leaning towards her sister.

Hanabi snatched her arm away from Hinata, almost elbowing Gaara in the eye. The Kazekage didn't seem to even notice, just continued to eat his dinner as if the world wasn't exploding around him.

"Hinata can kick your ass, anytime, anyplace!" Hanabi shouted. "You just name it, you so—!"

"Hanabi! That is enough!" Hinata hissed, snatching Hanabi's arm and pulling her away from the table. Hinata glanced back at Taiga, who was still laughing, and to her father who looked beyond furious. "I'm sorry Takeuchi-san. Hanabi is very young still and doesn't—"

"I am not young! I am a chunnin!" Hanabi snatched her arm out of her sister's grasp again and pointed at Takeuchi. "You've been in a war and this asshole is acting like you can't take care of yourself!" Hanabi snarled, ready to pounce.

"Hanabi." Hinata snapped, her voice serious and taking on a quality that Hanabi rarely heard from her—that of a mother that has met the end of her rope. "That is _enough._ " Hinata said without turning around, her voice sounding stern and commanding.

Hanabi froze for a moment before sitting herself back down and returning to shoveling food in her mouth. Hanabi was incredibly protective of her younger sister. Anyone speaking down to her, or ill of her, made Hanabi's blood boil.

"Now," Hinata smiled, "Where were we?" Hinata sat back down in her seat again, Gaara helping her in.

"I believe we were discussing whether or not you are a shinobi." Ryuki unhelpfully supplied.

"She is," Gaara deadpanned. "and I'd trust her with my life."

That seemed to satisfy the table, because Ryuki and the other man nodded their heads while Taiga rolled his eyes. That was enough for Hinata though. Gaara suggesting that he would be willing to rely on her made her insides warm. It was nice to be trusted and noticed by someone she called a friend, especially since that friend was someone who could command a room.

"Thank you, Gaara-san." Hinata whispered, as the table returned to amicable conversation.

Gaara nodded his head and returned to his meal, ignoring the buzzing conversation around him.

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The rest of dinner had been relatively boring. The only other comparably awkward moment had been when the man Hinata didn't know the name of had come over and kissed her hand while thanking her for the meal. Hinata learned from one of the maid's his name was Nakagawa Kaito. Hinata was glad she found out his name, because his words had made her feel as though she was covered in slime, and his kiss had sent a sickening chill up her arm.

There was just something about him that made her uncomfortable, and Hinata wanted to make certain that whoever she ended up with, was not him.

Now that it was well into the night, Hinata was glad that dinner was over, and found herself seeking comfort in the family's gardens. Even though there was a chill in the air, and the inky darkness made it difficult to see the garden's beauty, Hinata still found comfort in walking down the path.

That is, until she noticed she was being followed.

"Are you going to join me, Gaara-sama? Or remain at a distance?"

Gaara emerged from the darkness to join her. "I wasn't sure if you wanted to be alone or not—I didn't want to bother you."

Hinata smiled. "You are never a bother, Gaara-sama." Hinata gestured for him to walk beside her, and he acquiesced.

"Why are you out here?" Hinata asked, watching her bare feet as she remained on the stone path.

"I could ask you the same." Gaara replied.

Hinata resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "I needed to think."

"About?"

"My…situation." Hinata hesitated, faltering in her trek along the path. "I do not wish to marry." Hinata sighed. "I want to remain a shinobi, inside Konohagakure."

Gaara nodded. "I know, which is why I came."

Hinata glanced at Gaara warily. "Really?" Hinata continued to move along the path, her feet moving deftly.

"I came to offer you an amicable option." Gaara began. Hinata felt her heart stop. "I know you wish to remain a shinobi, I can offer that. We are friends, and amicable. I am told that you are attractive, which would be beneficial when we inevitably had children. You would be able to visit Konoha as often as you like, just like my sister, Temari." Gaara glanced at Hinata, assessing her reaction to his words.

"I admit, I am not interested in you in that way, but I am also in need of a wife. I will need at least one child someday, but you would be free to do as you please." Gaara tried to smile, but failed. "I would not dishonor you and sleep with another, I am not interested in such things," Gaara admitted. "I figured, since we are friends, this would be an amicable and logical solution."

Hinata took in a breath and let it out slowly, trying to keep herself from shaking. "I appreciate your friendship Gaara, but I can't…" Hinata trailed off.

"It's alright if you do not have an answer for me now, take your time. I will be returning to Suna tomorrow, but I travel to Konoha often." Gaara folded his hands behind his back. "It is simply an option for you to consider if you find yourself without something else, Hinata-chan." Gaara supplied, nodding his head.

Hinata stared at him, full of uncertainty. This made absolutely no sense to her, but she appreciated the fact that Gaara considered her a good friend and would even think to give her such an option.

"Thank you, Gaara-sama." Hinata said, after some time.

Gaara simply nodded, and continued to walk with Hinata through the garden until dawn.

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More often than not, Sasuke found himself woken by his nightmares. This was a typical occurrence for him, even before he returned to Konoha, but lately, they have been escalating in frequency, and in how disturbing they have been.

Tonight, he woke himself up screaming after the standard dream of coming home to dead and decomposing parents. The fact that they were dead was something that he accepted a long time ago, but he still struggled with the idea of it being his fault. When he was younger he blamed his brother, recently he thought he blamed Konoha, but now he wasn't so sure. Or at least he wasn't as sure in his dreams.

Sasuke shook his head.

It didn't make sense to lay in bed covered in sweat, pondering where to place the fault.

Sitting up, Sasuke pushed a hand through his thick hair. He needed to get a haircut soon. It was starting to brush his shoulders in the back, and the sides stuck out at odd angles. He was pretty certain he didn't even have scissors in his house. The fact that they couldn't even trust him with scissors was ridiculous, but not surprising.

Picking himself up off his dark grey bed spread, Sasuke glanced out the window to see that it was early morning. Still a couple hours until dawn, but at least he slept past midnight.

Pressing the heels of his hands to his eyes, Sasuke padded barefoot to the bathroom connected to his room. If he was up this early, he might as well shower and be comfortable before Hinata showed up.

Once in the bathroom, Sasuke turned on the shower and stripped down. He needed to find out whether Hinata would be moving in with him soon or not. The fact that Kakashi was toying with him about this was infuriating, but he needed to know. It was the only way he'd be able to continue moving forward with his plan.

Stepping into the shower, Sasuke made a decision. Either way, he would move forward it would just depend on whether or not he had Kakashi's assistance.

Sasuke continued to etch out his plan as he showered, the warm water beating against his back turned cold by the time he stepped out, his plan complete. Today, he would find out if Kakshi was willingly helping him, or if he needed to force his hand.

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 _Author's Note:_

 _Thank you for reading!_

 _Don't forget to REVIEW!_


	14. PART ONE: Chapter 13

_Author's Note:_

 _Oh man. This chapter did not go the direction I planned, but I think everyone will be happy with that._

 _Thank you to everyone that congratulated me about my engagement and asked how my fiancé is doing. He's doing fine, it was just a big scare for me. Also, I appreciate all the support that I've gotten about law school. It's been a pretty stressful term, but writing this story has been super helpful. I appreciate you all!_

 _Thank you again, and enjoy the chapter!_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto._

* * *

PART ONE

Chapter Thirteen: The Art of Suggestion

* * *

The next morning Hinata found herself walking Gaara to the front gate of the village. A part of her was sad to see him leave so soon after arriving, but she knew he had plenty of other duties to attend to back in his village. She was happy that she had been able to spend the night with a friend in mutual quiet. It was comforting.

"When do you think you will be returning to Konohagakure?" Hinata asked, keeping stride with Gaara. He was taller than her by a few inches, but took that into consideration as he walked, keeping his pace at what she could naturally keep up with. Gaara was truly a good and thoughtful man.

It made Hinata's heart pang. She knew him as a friend, maybe she could learn to have more feelings for him, but… Hinata knew this would not happen. They would grow into a mutual friendship that was strong and close to love, but it would be lacking in areas that she found herself wanting—that she never thought she would.

Still…

"I'll be back again before the end of the year. Kakashi would like to have a summit about all the villages and what our future holds for us." Gaara responded, eyes focused on what laid before him.

Hinata nodded thoughtfully, noting that the end of the year was a little more than two months away. He'd likely be back before her birthday.

Gaara and Hinata came to a stop at the gate of the village, and a group of Suna ANBU jumped down form the trees to surround the two of them. Gaara paused for a moment before turning to Hinata. His light green eyes conveying much more emotion than Hianta had expected.

Hinata knew that Gaara was fond of her as a friend, but the way he was looking at her now—maybe they could learn to be more than friends.

"If you change your mind before I'm back, you know where to find me." Gaara murmured, a deepness and seriousness to his voice that hadn't been there before. "Until then," Gaara leaned forward and took Hinata's hand, kissing her knuckles.

Hinata face burned red, by the time she had brought her hands to her face to cover her cheeks, Gaara and his ANBU were gone.

The petite Hyuuga felt as if her heart was going to beat out of her chest. She had certainly not expected Gaara to do that. Even worse, she hadn't expected herself to have such a reaction to it.

"Maybe it's because I'm so unfamiliar with all of this." Hinata patted her cheeks, trying to ease the heat from them.

Shaking her head, Hinata turned away from the front gate to head to Sasuke's. Never noticing that a certain blonde ninja had seen and heard everything.

* * *

Sasuke had been waiting for Hinata when she arrived. He'd already spoken with one of the ANBU that watch him, and let them know that he needed to speak with Kakashi. Today. The ANBU had scoffed at Sasuke, and Sasuke had to hold in the urge to rip the man's throat out. All he could do was glare at the man until he gave Sasuke an uncomfortable "Ok."

Now that Sasuke and Hinata were finished with their spar and left heaving on the ground, Sasuke was wondering if the ANBU had actually let Kakashi know that he needed to speak with him.

Leaning back, Sasuke jumped to his feet and dusted himself off.

Looking over to Hinata he debated asking her if she wanted to stay for lunch. Sometimes she did, and she would make lunch for the both of them, and it was pretty good. Plus, it would be beneficial if she was here when Kakashi came by too.

Making his decision, Sasuke looked over to Hinata again and felt his hear skip a beat. For some reason, the girl has decided to undo her braid. It was perplexing and oddly fascinating to watch her comb her fingers through her inky indigo hair. It wasn't quite black, but it wasn't quite blue or purple, it was an interesting in-between, that he knew did not match her family.

"Hn," Sasuke murmured, realizing that he had opened his mouth already. More and more he was realizing that he found Hinata to be more entertaining than a nuisance. Maybe he could reach for more than simply using her as a pathway out of the village.

"Hyuuga," Sasuke barked, his voice a great deal rougher than he had meant for it to be. "What are you doing?" he asked, trying to soften his voice. He was just curious, and didn't need to startle her in the process.

"Hm?" Hinata murmured, lost in thought while raking her fingers through her hair. Looking up to find Sasuke staring at her, Hinata gathered her hair and quickly started braiding it. "Sorry!" Hinata said hurriedly.

"Hn. What are you apologizing for?" Sasuke took a step forward and sat down beside Hinata.

Pausing for a moment in her rushed braiding, Hinata considered this for a moment. "I'm not sure really, sometimes I just say it when I don't know what else to say." Hinata admitted, avoiding eye contact.

"Well don't do that." Sasuke deadpanned, as if it was that obvious and simple.

Hinata giggled. "It's not that easy, it's like how you say 'hn' all the time."

Sasuke leaned back and considered that for a moment, trying to understand. "That's similar, but doesn't that mean you never mean 'sorry' when you say it then?"

Face burning, Hinata shook her head, losing her grip on her hair. "No no, I-I st-still mean it when I say it." Hinata tried to clarify, feeling her blush spreading down her neck.

"Then it isn't the same." Sasuke shortly supplied, his dark eyes assessing Hinata carefully. "Why are you braiding you hair again?" Sasuke asked, moving on to his original question.

Hinata watched as his gaze lingered more than she was used to. Of course, when sparring with someone you learned a great deal about them. About what they found distracting and what they noticed about you while sparring with you. Sparring with Sasuke was interesting. At times it seemed he noticed everything, but he looked as if he wasn't paying attention at all. As if he only needed to pay her minimal attention while fighting her, but then he'd pull a move that showed he'd been paying attention.

Sasuke noticing so much about her took her off guard. Thinking about it more, Hinata realized she noticed a great deal about him too, and that she helped facilitate all this by talking with him about such personal things in her life. Sasuke made it feel natural though, as if she should tell him things.

"My hair was messy, so I decided to redo the braid—

"But, why? You always braid it or pull it back somehow, why?" Sasuke's gaze moved to her eyes, burrowing into hers. The last Uchiha knew it was odd to ask, but he was truly curious. There was just something about it that fascinated him. _I guess I really do like long hair._ Sasuke thought, trying to make light of it and not analyze this thread of thoughts further.

Hinata felt like she was on fire, and not just because of her blush. She wasn't used to Sasuke speaking with her like this and the two of them talking almost intimately as if it was usual. He made it feel casual to talk about something she felt was personal.

Taking a breath, Hinata decided to explain. "I guess…" Hinata glanced at Sasuke to gage his interest. He seemed genuinely curious. She could tell a friend. "After Neji's death, it feels wrong to leave my hair down."

Sasuke hummed in reply. "Then why not cut it if it bothers you?"

"I don't know," Hinata shrugged. "That doesn't feel right either."

"That's weird."

Hinata snorted with laughter. "I guess it is." Shrugging her shoulders, Hinata finished up braiding her hair and tossed it over her shoulder. "Maybe I'll cut it once I marry." Hinata mused idly, looking off and losing focus. "I mean," Hinata shook her head, "I guess that will be happening sooner rather than later." Hinata forced a laugh.

Scrunching his face up in displeasure, Sasuke felt mildly disgusted by that idea. "Why would you cut it when you marry?"

"If I leave the village, it will feel more like a clean break, I think." Hinata nodded to herself.

"Well, why don't you try to stay in the village?" Sasuke asked, getting Hinata's attention.

Eyebrows drawing together, Hinata looked at Sasuke with serious confusion. "I thought we already talked about this, there's no one left to marry except for…" Hinata trailed off, feeling suddenly uncomfortable.

"For me and Naruto, right?" Sasuke grunted.

Hinata nodded, unsure of what else to say.

"Then why don't you marry me?"

* * *

Hinata felt her heart stop. "E-Excuse me, Uchiha-san? Wh—"

"I hope I'm not interrupting."

Sasuke and Hinata looked up to see Kakashi looking down at them with a smirk on his face. It was apparent, even though a majority of his face was hidden by his mask, that he found this situation humorous.

"You are, but you already know that." Sasuke snapped, standing up quickly.

"Well, you did ask to speak with me," Kakashi grinned, "and seeing as you're my favorite pupil, I couldn't help but oblige." Kakshi's mirth at this point was palpable.

"H-hello Kakashi-sama," Hinata said, quickly standing to bow to the Hokage.

Kakashi waved her off and continued to stare at Sasuke. "Go ahead, I'm sorry for interrupting." Kakashi said, making an uncomfortable amount of eye contact with Sasuke. "What was it you were saying?"

Noticing the way that Kakashi was looking at him, Sasuke knew he couldn't repeat himself without it being a problem. Kakashi clearly had an agenda when it came to Hinata, and Sasuke wasn't sure what it was. "It's fine."

"Wonderful!" Kakashi beamed, slapping Sasuke on the back. "Let's go inside and have some lunch then, and you can tell me all about whatever your worries were, yeah?"

"Well, I—" Sasuke glanced back at Hinata, feeling his plans of being alone with Hinata fading quickly. "I was going to have lunch with Hinata, like we usually do." Sasuke admitted, trying to save his plans.

"Oh, really?" Kakashi asked, raising his visible eyebrow and glancing between the two young adults.

Hinata's face flushed in embarrassment. It seemed she couldn't get away from be embarrassed today. It was beginning to be taxing on her. From Gaara this morning, to Sasuke a few moments ago, and now this. It was a bit much for her today, which was likely why she passed out almost immediately.

As she collapsed and lost consciousness, she saw Sasuke's face twist into worry as he lunged at her.

"Hinata!"

* * *

Cursing, Sasuke caught Hinata just before she hit the ground. "Did you really have to do that? You know how she is." Sasuke fumed, glaring at Kakashi.

Chuckling, Kakashi shook his head and apologized. "I thought she would be alright, I must have pushed her over the edge for today." Kakshi laughed.

"It's not funny," Sasuke hissed. Lifting Hinata up so he could carry her to the house. Jostling her slightly so she could be more comfortable, Sasuke began the long walk back to his house. For such a strong willed shinobi, she felt so small. It was a wonder that she was able to fight at all. Sasuke found it impressive if he was being honest. She had a quiet strength that was fierce, very much unlike a majority of the shinobi he knew, male or female. Hinata was…

"Where do you think you're going?" Kakashi called, interrupting his thoughts.

"Where do you think?" Sasuke called back, jerking his head in the direction of his house and rolling his eyes.

Glancing down at the woman in his arms, Sasuke's breath stuttered. Hinata was beautiful. She has full lips and large eyes with eyelashes that kissed her cheek bones. Surprised, Sasuke realized that Hinata was quite fair. Her skin next to his own was what made him realize it.

Her neck was pressed against his arm and the contrast was surprising. Similar, but still. How was she this fair and still a shinobi? She was an oxymoron. She made no sense.

"Hn." Sasuke grunted. Forcing himself to no longer think about the woman in his arms. No matter how soft she felt and how much a part of him felt like he wanted more than this.

Images of Hinata beneath him and calling out his name flashed before his eyes. Sasuke felt his chakra surge to his eyes. He was definitely better off not going down that trail of thought. Definitely better off just cutting that off before it went any further.

"Are you coming or what?" Sasuke called back to Kakashi as his house came into view.

Kakashi pretended not to notice the way Sasuke's voice strained, but couldn't keep himself from laughing about it anyway.

* * *

Hinata woke to Sasuke and Kakashi right in her face. It was startling, to say the least, which was why she yelped and scooted back from the two.

"She's fine." Kakashi supplied with a smile.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and stood.

Glancing around, Hinata realized that they were inside Sasuke's living room. Where she had been dropped off the last time she had fainted in front of the Uchiha. Cheeks heating in embarrassment, Hinata bowed her head. "I'm sorry for troubling you—"

"Oi," Sasuke called, stopping in his trek to the kitchen. "I thought we already talked about apologizing." Sasuke snapped without turning around.

"Oh." Hinata muttered to herself, and nodded.

"Are you going to help me make lunch, or what?" Sasuke glanced over his shoulder to Hinata.

"O-oh, yes!" Hinata popped up from the couch and scurried over to Sasuke to join him in the kitchen.

The two of them had made lunch together on a few occasions. Well, together wasn't exactly true. It was more like Hinata made all of the food, while Sasuke grabbed whatever Hinata needed. The first time they had lunch together after sparring, Hinata had struggled to find everything in Sasuke's kitchen, which Sasuke had found "annoying, hn." So, since then, he got her what she needed, especially since she seemed to struggle with reaching a majority of the items in overhead cabinets.

The arrangement was somewhat of a relief for Hinata. She felt nosy looking through all of Sasuke's things while trying to make a meal, which made her squirm and blush. Sasuke taking over that portion of it really helped, so she didn't have to feel like she was invading his privacy, and she didn't have to worry about how long it was going to take her to find everything she needed. All Hinata had to do was ask for what she needed, and Sasuke would hand it to her without a word.

Moving through the kitchen in relative silence was unnerving the first couple of times, but now that it was a relatively common thing for the two of them, Hinata no longer felt awkward. Sasuke's silence was calming. Hinata didn't have to worry about what to say to him or how to respond, she just had to complete the task at hand. It was surprisingly nice.

Hinata glanced over at Sasuke and watched as he brushed past her, reaching above her head as she began cutting up vegetables. Sasuke moved so incredibly gracefully. When they would train, there were times that Hinata found herself staring at the way Sasuke moved. For someone that smelt like lightning, with chakra that felt like it too, Sasuke moved as if he was water. Smooth and precise. Eyes widening, Hinata realized she was staring at Sasuke, again.

And then she felt it.

Sasuke's breath caressed her ear as he moved beside her again to grab all the dishes she needed. All the breath in Hinata's lungs froze up.

Immediately, her face broke out in a heated blush. Hinata tried to bury her face to keep anyone from noticing, but the smirk on Sasuke's face made it clear that she had failed in hiding it.

* * *

Kakashi watched, mildly perplexed at what was unfolding in front of him. He noted the way Sasuke smirked when Hinata caught up to him, and the way Hinata's cheeks flushed when she saw. There was something budding between the two of them, and Kakashi wasn't sure how to feel. He wasn't sure that Sasuke even realized it, let alone Hinata.

Kakashi was aware that Sasuke had ulterior motives when it came to asking for Hinata to stay with him. He just wasn't sure what they were. Perhaps, the best way to find out, would be to let it happen.

Kakashi, considering this, followed the two into the kitchen after a moment and continued to observe the two.

Rounding the corner, Kakashi watched as the two worked in tandem to get lunch going. Sasuke grabbing utensils and plates, while Hinata began cutting vegetables and tossing them into the pan to join some sizzling meat. Kakashi felt his stomach clench, he'd heard of Hinata's cooking, but never had the opportunity to enjoy it. The way Sasuke was moving around the kitchen with Hinata and the way he was acting, it was clear that the two did this sort of thing rather often.

Kakashi's smirk grew wider, his decision made.

* * *

Sasuke enjoyed Hinata's cooking.

It was part of why he let her come around so often. That and the fact that he planned to use her to escape the village. So her cooking was just a happy coincidence that made her more appealing. No. Barrable. Everything about Konoha was just barrable for now. Including Hinata.

Glancing out of the corner of his eye, Sasuke watched as Hinata began work on quickly cooking the vegetables and meat, while making some rice and sauce. She was a good multitasker, he'd give her that.

Studying the Hyuuga for a moment, Sasuke noted the way she focused on the task before her with the same amount of seriousness that one would approach surgery. Sasuke rolled his eyes. Hinata was odd, but useful.

Normally, Sasuke and Hinata ate at the stools that were at the kitchen counter, but since Kakashi was with them, apparently, they would have to eat in the dining room. Sasuke sighed, irritated, as he carried utensils over to the table.

Walking back into the kitchen, Sasuke watched Hinata.

Objectively, he knew the Hyuuga was attractive. He did. He wasn't an idiot, he was an Uchiha. And he was a man, so of course he noticed, but he was an Uchiha. And Uchiha were stoic and kept these things to themselves. Which was why, watching her make food in his kitchen and the way she moved in it filled his chest with something akin to pride. Which didn't make sense to him.

Sensing that Kakashi was watching him, Sasuke looked over to see Kakashi sitting at the counter, quietly observing.

"What." Sasuke snapped.

"Oh, nothing," Kakashi smirked, "I was just wondering what it was you two were discussing when I arrived."

Sasuke rolled his eyes at that. The way Kakashi was grinning, it was clear the Hokage was aware of exactly what Sasuke had been saying to Hinata when he arrived. Moving so that he was in front of Kakashi and blocking Hinata from Kakashi's line of sight, Sasuke leaned against the counter and stared Kakashi in the eye.

"What do you want, you old perv?" Sasuke hissed, eyes narrowing.

"What are your motives with our dear Hinata-chan, Sasuke-kun?" Kakashi responded, a threat laced into his voice.

Sasuke snorted. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Raising an eyebrow, Kakashi considered his former pupil, and looked to Hinata. "Hinata-chan?"

"Oh!" Hinata spun around, surprised at being addressed. "Y-yes, Kakashi-sama?"

"How did it go?" Kakashi smiled, but it did not reach his eyes. Noticing Hinata's confusion at his question. He elaborated. "Meeting your suitors, that is."

Flushing red, Hinata looked away, embarrassed. "Well…" Hinata turned back around, focusing on stirring the meat and vegetables in front of her. "It went about as well as you'd expect." Hinata sighed, trying to avoid the conversation all together.

"So, did anyone propose yet?" Kakashi asked, watching Sasuke carefully.

Hinata winced, feeling uncomfortable. "Well, technically Gaara-sama offered, but I declined." Hinata answered truthfully, her face burning.

Kakashi noticed the way Sasuke tensed up at her response, only to look relieved as soon as she said she "declined."

"Oh really, Hinata-chan. That's too bad, Gaara-san is a nice man, certainly of a stature that the Hyuuga would find suitable for you, too." Kakashi said, leaning forward, watching as Sasuke's shoulders tensed again and his face twitched ever so slightly.

"Gaara-sama is very kind, which is why he offered," Hinata said, a smile in her voice. Sasuke tensed, squeezing the counter in front of him. "Unfortunately, Gaara-sama is just a friend, and although I appreciate his offer to save me, I cannot accept, not when it is a decision that would change our lives forever." Hinata sighed, eyebrows knitting together as she tried to explain her line of thought. "It would feel like I am asking him to give up much more than he realizes, and I…" Hinata trailed off for a moment, her shoulders slumping forward. "I also want more than what he has admitted he can offer me."

Hinata sighed, tears forming in her eyes.

"I appreciate him for being my friend, but I still want to figure something else out," Hinata glanced back at the two male shinobi behind her, "you know?"

Kakashi nodded solemnly. "That is a wise decision, Hinata-chan."

Sasuke felt his muscles relax, not realizing how tense he had become. Unfortunately, Kakashi noticed and decided to tease him for it. "Hinata-chan, what about Sasuke-kun?"

Startled at his suggestion, Hinata dropped the pan and the wooden spoon she had been using to get the food onto a separate dish for serving. "I-I-I—" Hinata's face burned bright red as she fumbled for words and struggled to clean up the mess she'd created. "I-uh-I doubt that that is an arrangement th-that Uchiha-san would be comfortable w-with." Hinata stuttered out, nervousness encasing her body.

Sasuke frowned at her response, but focused his glare at Kakashi, unsure of what his old sensei was trying to do.

"Nonsense!" Kakashi beamed, reaching over the counter to slap Sasuke on the back. "Right, Sasuke-kun? Wouldn't Hinata-chan make a wonderful wife?" Kakashi suggested, waggling his eyebrows.

Sasuke choked on his spit.

Hinata glanced between the two men, eyes wide with alarm.

"I think you've upset her." Sasuke murmured to Kakashi, his frown deepening.

"Maybe you've upset her, Sasuke-kun. You didn't say that you would, so what is she to think?" Kakashi chastised Sasuke, shaking his head.

A slight tinge of pink dusted Sasuke's cheeks. He hadn't expected to be put on the spot like that. Especially about this. "Well, Hinata…" Sasuke trailed off, noticing how tense the Hyuuga looked. "I have asked Kakashi to have someone live in the house with me, instead of having the ANBU outside all the time. My time stuck on house arrest should be ending shortly," Sasuke cut a glare to Kakashki. "And, I want to be able to get around the village easily and without problem." Sasuke considered his wording for a moment before trudging on, noticing the way tension was easing from Hinata's shoulders. "To give you time to figure out what you want to do, you could be assigned to be my ANBU guard," Sasuke suggested.

"Under the guise of being my intended, that is." Sasuke added after a beat.

Hinata's cheeks burned bright, and she looked as if she wasn't breathing.

"Plus, I need someone to help me change this house. Sakura did a terrible job and I hate it." Sasuke admitted, glancing around the house, a look of disgust plastered to his face.

Sasuke glanced at Hinata as he put on a show of being disgusted, trying to gage her reaction. She didn't appear immediately opposed to it, which was good for him. The only issue, aside from her saying yes, would be if the Hyuuga would accept this.

"I sincerely doubt that the Hyuuga would accept you as Hinata's intended," Kakashi sighed, shaking his head. "It would give Hinata more time to figure out what she wants to do, and possibly some time to decide on her suitors." Kakashi suggested with a shrug.

"So, you're suggesting informing the Hyuuga that it is simply a mission?" Sasuke quirked an eyebrow.

"Exactly," Kakashi smiled.

"I…I think I need to think about that." Hinata muttered, her face drained of all color and feeling faint. "I think…I need to sit down." Hinata slurred, slumping against the counter.

Immediately, Sasuke was by her side and moving her to the dining room table, his hand on her elbow as he guided her. "I think you need to eat before you pass out again," Sasuke muttered.

Sitting her down, Sasuke moved to bring over the food as Hinata came to terms with this suggestion that Kakashi and Sasuke had doctored up.

"How would we even do this?" Hinata asked, exasperated, "And why would you help me?" Hinata looked to Sasuke as he carried in the finished meal and set the serving plates down in the middle of the dark table.

Taking a seat beside her, Sasuke frowned. "Well, it's convenient for me, because I will have more freedom, and it should get me more seals removed because I'm helping someone, right Kakashi?" Sasuke asked, looking to his former sensei that was seated across from him.

"That's fair," Kakashi shrugged. "I think I can talk the counsel into giving you a little more freedom. Plus, we can remove another chakra seal for your helping Hinata-chan. We can rationalize that as a way for you to be able to protect Hinata in the event that something happens." Kakashi thought aloud. "I mean, this will garner some unwanted attention, considering a Hyuuga will be appearing to be engaged to the last Uchiha. Hyuugas already have a fair amount of enemies, adding Sasuke-kun to the mix will make some people angry, or give them something to attack." Kakashi murmured, digging into his food.

"I'm not too worried about that though," Kakashi said as he chewed his food. "You two are capable enough, even with Sasuke as restrained as he is," Kakashi said with a chuckle, gesturing at the two.

"So, what do you think, Hinata?" Sasuke asked, feeling uncertain as he tried to look into the Hyuuga's eyes.

Hinata considered it for a moment, deep in thought. Considering all the possible problems that could arise, what type of fallout would they be dealing with? Possibly enormous.

That thought didn't deter Hinata, though. The prospect of getting out of her own house and away from the suitors that would be staying there was enough for her to make her decision.

"Alright, let's do it."

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Thank you for reading!  
Don't forget to REVIEW!_


End file.
